


This Road Comes from Deneva

by starsinger



Series: Deneva [1]
Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-04
Updated: 2013-12-13
Packaged: 2017-12-28 10:11:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 40
Words: 38,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/990804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starsinger/pseuds/starsinger
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Role switching story here, so an AU. Kirk is a new Doctor who has been abruptly handed the care of his five year old orphaned nephew (TOS episode: Operation: Annihilate as background), Peter. McCoy is the town drunk who suddenly finds himself the parent to his five year old daughter, Joanna, who was abandoned by her mother. Spock is switching with Uhura, Sulu is now the navigator, Chekov the Engineer, and Scotty the helmsman. No idea how this is going to work out. Don't own them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> I've been reluctant to post this, as it's an ongoing project on fanfiction.net, but, wth, here we go.

"Uncle Jim?" the small voice asked him. Kirk opened his eyes and they picked out the small form of his nephew standing in the doorway. "May I sleep with you?" the boy looked just like his father, Sam. The same blonde hair and hazel eyes that made Jim's heart ache. Jim lifted up the covers and Peter, and his teddy bear, Henry, crawled into bed next to him. This didn't happen every night, but it had become more and more frequent over the past few weeks.

Jim had been devastated. After years of not speaking to each other, he'd gotten word that his brother Sam, his wife, Aurelan, and two of their three children had died on Deneva. Details were sketchy, but it seemed an alien parasite had landed on the planet and took over the population. The USS Hood, Captain Pike at its helm, managed to find a way to rid the planet of the parasite, but not before Peter had become an orphan. When Pike showed up on Jim's doorstep with the waif in tow, Jim didn't know what to do. He couldn't refuse him, no one wanted him in fosterage, or with Winona, so Jim took him in. He grieved in private and loved Peter in public, never wanting him to feel that he was a burden.

Unfortunately, this left Kirk in a dilemma. He was 22, and had been practicing medicine at the local clinic. When that shut down, all the medical care had moved to Des Moines. Jim was practically out of a job, not wanting to abandon the town that had given him so much. So, he got a job at the nearby Shipyards with another of his specialties, Computer Science. The vessels being constructed there would have the latest in computer and nanotechnology, and as one of the tops in his field, Starfleet had snapped him up to work on their ships.

The dilemma was that he worked odd hours, and couldn't always get someone to watch Peter when he was at work. Mrs. Demorka, the old lady downstairs, most often took over, but, sometimes, he ended up taking the boy with him and letting him sleep on the couch in his office. Engineers got their own offices. The day that Pike had shown up with Peter, Pike had told him to join Starfleet. They could always use more doctors. They even had family housing for cadets in his situation. Kirk sighed and finally fell asleep, Peter resting comfortably at his side.

They awoke the next morning and Jim made breakfast. His eating habits had become more regular now because of Peter's needs. He'd even stopped burning pancakes. Peter thought it was funny how slow his Uncle Jim ate. It never occurred to the boy that it wasn't normal, or his having to remind Jim that he was hungry. Jim left Peter with Mrs. Demorka and reminded her that he'd be late. He was having some drinks with some friends after work.

He arrived late at the bar, having had to work through some technical glitches on one of the ships, the Enterprise, and came swooping in to give Gloria, his friend, a quick kiss on the cheek. They were good friends, and she laughed as he plopped down beside her before ordering a drink, "Jim, you're late. Another bug in the system."

"You could say that," Jim replied. "Also had to stop and check in on Peter."

"You dote on that boy as if he were your own son, Jim…" her voice trailed off as a loud argument seemed to be coming from the bar.

"Hey, cutie, come over here with us," a man said, slurring his words badly. He'd grabbed a woman, by the arm. Admittedly, the woman was beautiful, dark, slender, and wearing an academy teacher's uniform, she informed the drunk cadet to keep his mitts to himself. Kirk rose, "Jim, don't get involved. They're leaving tomorrow."

"I can't stay out of this, Gloria," he added as the Cadet started to make his way out of the bar, woman in tow. Jim got in the way, "Hey, Cupcake! Let the lady go!"

Cupcake let go of the woman as he turned to Kirk, "Who's going to stop me, you?" Kirk ducked as "Cupcake" swung at him. The fight was short, and brutal as Cupcake was joined by three of his friends. Kirk gave as good as he got until he ended upside down over a table. Then, a short sharp whistle sounded as a voice advised, "Cadets! Outside!"

Gloria grimaced as she headed over to the table to help Jim up, "You can whistle really loud, you know that?" he asked the man making his way into the bar.

Pike shook his head, "Your actions are commendable, Dr. Kirk, but what are you doing in this dump?"

Kirk shook his head as Gloria tried to staunch the blood flowing from his nose and looked up at Pike, "Trying to unwind."

Pike looked at Gloria, "Cadet, you should join them outside."

Jim looked at Gloria confused, "Cadet, when did you sign up?"

"That's what I was going to tell you, Jim. I joined Starfleet," she was looking at the floor.

Pike looked at her, "Go, Cadet Smithson, I need to talk to Jim." She left as Pike looked at Kirk, "You've been doing well at the Shipyards. Peter has actually put some weight on you."

"Well, I eat when he eats, and he gets hungry a lot," Kirk mumbled. "What do you want Pike?"

"Join Starfleet, Jim. We need you. You're a good doctor and you're being wasted out here," Pike looked at him. "Shuttle leaves tomorrow morning with the class of new recruits. I've got a command track cadet who's afraid of dying in space, but has a five year old daughter to support, so he joined up. Give it a shot, Jim."

Jim closed his eyes as Pike left, unable to bear the thought of going into space. It had killed his father on the day he'd been born. Ultimately, it had also killed his brother and most of his family, he didn't want to die in space either. He returned home and retrieved Peter before sitting down with the little boy. "Peter, we're packing tonight. We're going to San Francisco to live tomorrow. Uncle Jim is going back to school."

Peter helped Jim pack, as much as a five year old could, and sat down to watch television in his pajamas. It was going to be a long day tomorrow. Jim had Mrs. Demorka drop them off at the shipyards in the morning light. She hugged Jim, wishing him luck, and kissed Peter, who still held onto Henry, telling him to be a good boy. Jim got on board, eyeing Cupcake and his friends wearily, before strapping Peter in next to him. He strapped himself in before another little voice interrupted him, "Hi, my name is Joanna. My Daddy's hiding in the bathroom because he's afraid of flying." Jim turned to find a beautiful little girl sitting next to him, dressed in pajamas and carrying a blanket.

"Did he not tell you not to speak to strangers?" Kirk asked.

"Yes, he did, but you've got a little boy with you, and that's different," she peered over, as much as she could, at Peter, who looked back.

"I had a seat! In the damn bathroom, a place with no windows! I'm aviophobic, that's a fear of dying while in space," the man was being manhandled back across the shuttle.

"Sit down before I make you sit!" the woman handling him shouted. He sat, next to Joanna. Kirk looked at him.

"I may throw up on you kid," Jim was advised.

"Uh, only if you miss Jo, here," Jim added.

"Jo, what did I tell you about talking to strangers?!" the other man asked exasperatedly.

"But Daddy, he has a little boy with him!" Jo protested.

"My nephew, Peter," Jim added hastily. "I'm Jim, Jim Kirk. If you're afraid of flying, why'd you join Starfleet, they operate in space, you know?"

"Well, I didn't have much choice, my wife took everything I had in the divorce. All I have left is my daughter and my bones."


	2. A New Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter, Jim, Bones, and Joanna attempt to adjust to their new surroundings, and Kirk realizes that Jo has nothing but the pajamas she's wearing. Fortunately, Mrs. Demorka was overly generous when she was giving Jim kids clothes when Peter first came to stay. Cookies to anyone who can guess where I got the name of the Teddy Bear Peter's been carting around. Hints: It's one of my favorite series currently on television, and it stars the actress who played Winona Kirk. This one should be easy, don't have to be a Trekkie to know it! Don't own them.

Angela Demorka was a devious woman, whether she realized it or not. When Peter first came to stay with Jim, she'd given him all sorts of clothes and toys, not all of them meant for little boys. For some strange reason, Jim hadn't given away the girl's stuff, and found that he was glad he hadn't. As soon as they exited the shuttle, Jim realized that the duffle McCoy carried only carried his stuff. He wasn't in the least bit prepared for a child, much less a little girl.

Peter, when he realized this, opened the suitcase Jim had brought with them, not the one that was being sent to his housing assignment, and found a little unicorn that was a little too pink for his taste. He pulled it out and gave it to Jo. Jo looked at the tiny pink animal with wide eyes and thanked Peter before pulling the critter into a tight, blissful hug. As they hit the lines, Kirk automatically sought out the Science/Medical part. He nodded at McCoy, not before telling him to come find him for some more clothes for Jo, then headed over to the appropriate line.

"Name," came the bored voice of the woman in front of him. She poked at the PADD in front of her.

"Kirk, Dr. James Tiberius and his nephew, Peter," Jim replied.

Her head shot up as his name appeared on her PADD. "Oh, Dr. Kirk, yes, we've been expecting you," she handed him another PADD. "Okay, we need you to drop Peter off at Starfleet Daycare for a few hours so you can go through the standard process of incoming cadets. You won't have to worry about testing, as you've already graduated from college, and we have those courses on record. But, you'll need to go in for your physical, and get your new uniforms." Kirk watched as she took a deep breath.

She pointed to another screen, "These are your room assignments. As you're going into family housing, you'll be sharing an apartment with Leonard McCoy, another cadet with a child. He's command track so there shouldn't be too much fuss. Apartments have four bedrooms with a mutual living area. As your nephew is a young child, as opposed to an infant or a toddler, his needs will be assessed at the daycare while you are getting other things done. Daycare is free to all Starfleet Personnel, and someone is available at any time of the day, given that you'll be working at the hospital."

Then she pointed to the contract he'd signed, "Remember, there is a minimum six year enlistment in Starfleet for the education you are about to receive, but, with the generational ships they are now building, you'll be able to bring your nephew along with you. You can leave your belongings at the Daycare, they'll keep an eye on them while you're busy."

Jim thanked the woman and followed the GPS system on the PADD to the daycare. A bright young woman in civilian clothes popped over the upper half of a closed door, the bottom half being closed, and smiled at them, "May I help you?" she asked, beaming at Peter who looked curiously up at her. Jim looked inside the room to discover Joanna already inside.

"Yes, I'm Dr. Kirk. I'm dropping off my nephew so I can get us situated," Jim answered.

The young woman, Melanie by name, opened the door to let them in, "Oh, yes, Dr. Kirk, come in. You must be Peter!" The woman squatted down to eye level with the boy. "I'm Mrs. Brooks, Peter. Come on in and we can play some games! Oh, I'm sorry Doctor, just leave your stuff over there in the corner," she waved a hand toward the corner of the room where a stack of bags had already grown. Jim deposited the bags and kissed Peter's head before heading off in the direction the PADD told him to go.

The physical told him things he already knew, he was underweight. It was a problem that he'd had since his rescue from Tarsus IV nine years ago. The medical staff put him on a strict diet regimen, and told him he needed to eat regularly. He laughed when he told them not to worry, his nephew was making sure of that. When he went to his psychiatric evaluation, he, again, told them about Tarsus IV. It wasn't like he was going to be in command of anything, so no one really was concerned about that part of his mental competency. It was, in fact, that period in his life that he stirred him on to enter medical school when he returned to Earth.

Jim had graduated from high school at the age of ten. Gotten into trouble and drove his stepfather's car off a cliff at twelve, and spent a year of hell on Tarsus IV. Taking care of that many kids had spurred him on to want to do research into malnutrition and their effects on the developing body of a child. Yale had accepted him immediately, seeing a child prodigy. The Tarsus IV settlement project had paid for his education, and even his double Doc in Medicine and Computer Sciences, he just had a natural aptitude for Computers.

Jim had returned to Riverside, intent on serving the community he grew up in after graduating at the age of 20, but two years later, the medical center he worked at closed and his nephew landed at his front door step. He was a surgeon and general practitioner, and was snapped up because he already had experience in the medical field. He picked up his uniforms in a duffel bag, retrieved Peter and the rest of his luggage, and headed for the family units.

When they entered the apartment assigned to them, they already found McCoy there, staring morosely at the kitchenette, "Do you know how to cook?" McCoy asked.

"I've been forced to learn. Do you have any clothes for Joanna?" Kirk asked.

"No," McCoy mumbled. "She was left on my doorstep by her mother with nothing but her pjs and that blanket. I found myself here the next day."

"Well, I had an overly generous neighbor who gave me lots of stuff for kids, boys and girls," Kirk opened the bags he'd packed for Peter. "Here, this is all the girl's stuff. I didn't have the heart to give it away. You're more than welcome to it."

McCoy's mouth moved but no words came out, "Thank you."

Kirk smiled, "Just call me Jim."


	3. The Sorting Hat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don't mean that literally, btw. Okay, we're back at the Academy, and Jim and Bones and the kids are all trying to figure it out, with varying degrees of success. Jim has an appointment at the hospital in the morning, Bones has one with Pike in the afternoon, and they both agree to look after the kids while the other is busy.

Jim awoke. Not a particularly unexpected event, but he didn't expect to have two pairs of eyes staring down at him from atop his chest. "Uncle Jim," Oh, great, Jo was already calling him Uncle Jim, he was in trouble, "can you make us some pancakes?"

Jim eyed the other trouble maker before sighing, "If you let me up, I can." The two instantly scrambled off his person and onto the floor where he sat up and headed for the kitchen. He had remembered that he and Bones had stopped at the Commissary last night to pick up some basic food stuff, including pancake batter. McCoy wandered in at the smell of pancakes, sausage, bacon and eggs. He peered blearily up at his new roommate. "Morning, Bones, our two little alarm clocks had me up a little while ago requesting breakfast."

"I hate mornings, and I suck at breakfast," Bones mumbled.

Jim leaned over the counter and pointed a spatula at Jo, "Is he always this grumpy in the mornings?"

Jo giggled, "Not just in the mornings!"

"Traitor," Bones mumbled.

"Coffee's made, and it's strong. I did used to work in the shipyards, and they liked it strong," Jim said pointing to the coffee maker.

As Bones turned around to return to the counter, he noticed the wedding band on Jim's finger. "Hey," he said pointing to the ring, "things not work out for you either?"

Jim's face saddened as he and Peter looked at each other. Jim reached across the counter to touch the boy's hair, "No, she was on Deneva, along with Peter and his family."

Bones' mouth worked, but no words came out. Deneva was a recent tragedy, unlike Tarsus IV, and it wasn't anybody's fault. The colonists had been unable to call for help, and when Pike's ship arrived, the only reason anyone suspected something was wrong was because one of them drove a ship into the system's sun. That had also given them a clue as how to beat the parasite's insidious hold on the local population. The sun's ultraviolet light destroyed them completely.

Pike's Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Puri, summed it up, "The parasite's attached themselves to the central nervous system and took over completely. When we got down to the planet, the people attacked us, and, yet, tried to warn us away, actions and words competing with each other. It took us some time, but after realizing that the sun killed the parasite before the man hit the sun, we were able to come up with a plan of action to kill them. Unfortunately, we were too late for roughly half of the population who died."

Peter's head was bowed, "I miss Mom and Dad and Jennie and Tommy, and Aunt Kitty."

Jim came around and put his arms around the little boy who had lost so much in his short life, "So do I, Peter, so do I. Hey, in a couple of weeks, maybe we can get Grandpa Frank to come over. He's never seen San Francisco."

"Uncle Jim, he's never been outside Riverside!" Peter said with a grin. The smile that lit up Peter's face meant he was looking forward to seeing "Grandpa Frank".

The kids were in their rooms getting dressed as Jim cleaned up the kitchen when McCoy asked, "Who's 'Frank'? I thought your father was, well…"

"Dead? Yes, George Kirk died on the USS Kelvin when I was born. My mother remarried when I was five. A good man named Frank Conners. He took good care of us when Winona was away for Starfleet." Jim sighed, "Winona, my mother, was abusive. She used to beat us. Frank threatened to call Child Protective Services if she didn't stop. He even threatened to divorce her and take us away. He eventually did just that, and I haven't seen Winona in, oh, well, just before I drove my father's car off a cliff when I was twelve. Frank got me off planet, sent me to my aunt and uncle's place, and had it out with Winona. When I got back, Winona was permanently gone and Frank never left."

"How'd you meet Gloria?"

"At my aunt's place, look, I'll be blunt, and this isn't to go passed us. Gloria and I were on Tarsus IV. She returned with me to Frank's, and he took us both in."

"How? I can't even begin to understand how you're still alive, much less sane, Jim. Frank is obviously a good man," he paused as the kids ran out of their rooms. "I'll take a shower first."

Jim's first stop was the hospital. He had an interview with Dr. Puri at 1000. McCoy had an interview with Captain Pike at 1300. They decided that one would watch the kids while the other had their interview, and would meet up for lunch, and after McCoy's interview to go shopping for more stuff for Joanna. Jim arrived at the hospital in plenty of time to see Puri. Able Puri was excited to see Kirk. Most of the first years at the academy had little to no medical training, and here was a full-fledged doctor with several years of medical practice under his belt. He talked to him about the classes he would be taking, and showed him around the hospital. Jim smiled at everyone and was pleasant, but was ready to leave by the time lunch rolled around.

Jim met up with everyone at the mess hall. McCoy noticed the second oddity of Jim's behavior. He took his tray to the far end of the hall and sat down in a corner facing the rest of the hall. His eyes never rested in one place at any given time, as if he tried to keep an eye on everyone and everything. Gloria joined them with the exact same behavior. McCoy filed that away for later. As they were leaving the mess, Commander Uhura came up to Kirk talking excitedly about computers and needing his expertise on a program that was well over twenty years old and needing help. Jim looked down at his nephew and friend, ill-prepared for this encounter when Gloria volunteered to take them back to their apartment and watch them.

McCoy's interview with Pike was long. Pike expected a lot out of him, McCoy was super-smart and sharp as a knife. He also wanted McCoy to have dinner with him and his wife once a week to talk over any concerns that he might have. He was more than welcome to bring Joanna along. He left the meeting with a sense of belonging. Pike always had an eye out for talent, and was willing to help McCoy along the way. He was walking across campus when he ran into a man with another little girl in tow. He smiled down at the young girl, "How old is she?"

"Demora, tell him hold you are," the other man said.

"I'm four and a half years old," the little girl solemnly announced.

McCoy laughed. "I have a daughter about her age. Is she staying with you?" he asked.

"No, she and her mother live here in San Francisco. Makes it easy for a visit. I'm Hikaru Sulu, born and raised here in San Francisco."

"Leonard McCoy, I'm from Georgia," I'm headed back to my apartment to meet up with my roommate. Stuff to do before classes start.

"Don't I know it," Sulu said with a laugh.

They parted as McCoy's PADD beeped at him. He suddenly realized that he must have grabbed Jim's PADD by mistake when his class schedule appeared and the first class was: Xenobiology.


	4. Classes Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh, yes, I know, original name, but I'm helping defend beamirang's home from a horde of tribbles being shot out of a cannon just so I can get the next chapter of Fortunate Sons. My friends and I are wielding shovels and baseball bats. I digress. This starts with messages between McCoy and Kirk regarding their PADDs and ends with the Ethics Professor realizing that he has not one, not two, but three Tarsus IV survivors in his class in a VERY dramatic fashion. Don't own any of them.

To: Cadet Leonard H. McCoy, San Francisco

From: Cadet James T. Kirk, San Francisco

Subject: PADDs

Hey, Jim, did you get my PADD this morning? If not, I need to talk to Captain Pike about my weird schedule. I shouldn't be taking anything ending in "ology".

To: Cadet James T. Kirk, San Francisco

From: Cadet Leonard H. McCoy, San Francisco

Subject: Re: PADDs

Yeah, I think that's what happened, Bones. I shouldn't be taking anything starting with "Command Track". Am I taking that Ethics Class this semester?

To: Cadet Leonard H. McCoy, San Francisco

From: Cadet James T. Kirk, San Francisco

Subject: Re: PADDs

Yeah, you have it second class on Mondays and Wednesdays. Did you see the first chapter?

To: Cadet Leonard H. McCoy, San Francisco

From: Cadet James T. Kirk, San Francisco

Subject: Re: PADDs

Yeah, I don't know how I'll handle it. Maybe I should talk to Admiral Archer. Whoa, speak of the devil. Catch you later at the apartment.

McCoy kept the kids entertained with Gloria's help and finally Jim turned up after dinner. He shook his head, they'd talk about it after they got the kids to bed. "Archer wanted to know if I'll be coming out as a survivor in that class. Apparently, Gloria, Starfleet's put a lockdown on our records, especially regarding that period in our lives." Gloria wound her arms around Jim's waist and gave him a hug. He absently returned the embrace, and McCoy was suddenly envious of the easy relationship that they had.

"Hey, I took Len out with Jo and we went shopping. Got some really cute clothes for her," Gloria told him.

"There's another survivor here, Gloria, Tom," Jim told her.

Gloria gasped, "Tommy? But his face is…was blown half off!"

"I saw him, Gloria, he's covered it. We all have scars, your arms, my back, Tom's face. Some are just more visible than others," his eyes glistened. McCoy glanced at the two of them. Jim pulled off his shirt and turned his back to McCoy as Gloria rolled up her sleeves. A mass of scars covered Jim's back in a horizontal, almost methodical pattern. Gloria's scars were long and round ones interweaved over most of her upper arms. Some looked like burn marks. "Before you ask, he used a whip," Kirk said.

"Who?" McCoy asked.

"Kodos," they both said together.

"Y'all are part of the Tarsus 9. You know what he looks like," McCoy whispered. They nodded. It was a long night of revelations. Neither spoke of JT. Sunday passed without much happening, and Monday came with a blur. Jim and Leonard managed to get the kids off to day care with little fuss and headed to their respective classes. Jim had refused to say what Admiral Archer had wanted to talk to him about, just mentioned the cute little beagle in his office. They parted ways, Jim to Xenobiology, and Bones to Command Track Tactics 101: Welcome to Hell. He left the class wondering why he hadn't been more interested in Science, it would have been safer.

He entered the Ethics class and glanced around. He found Jim, Gloria, and another man with a metal plate covering half his face in a corner at the top of the room. It was an auditorium shaped room that was expected to hold many people. He joined them as Gloria introduced the other man, "Leonard McCoy, Tom Leighton, Tom, Leonard is Jim's roommate and Jo's father," Tom nodded in welcome and McCoy couldn't help but feel that Tom saw things other than what was normally seen with that prosthetic eye. Jim had his eyes glued to his PADD.

The tall, woman in who entered the room was from Alpha Centauri. Humanoid, they were known for their shocks of white hair, and the men affected long, flowing mustaches. She glanced around the room, "I am Professor Atrice Godald, your Ethics teacher. All of you are first year cadets, and as such, are required to take this course. This may not seem necessary for those of you who are not Command students, but, as all of you will become officers, this is required. Now, if you'll open your PADDs, you'll find the syllabus for the course." She proceeded to talk about what she expected during the semester, and how she expected it. "Now, hopefully, most of you have looked at the book. How many of you have heard what happened on Tarsus IV?" Everyone raised their hands. "Okay, that's good. How many of you had family on Tarsus IV?" Five people's hands remained in the air. "Wow, that's more than I usually get. Okay, of those of you with your hands still in the air, how many of you survived Tarsus IV?"

Godald asked that question of every new class. She never expected anyone to keep their hands raised, and until this day, no one had, but this time was different. She looked up to see three hands still in the air. She swallowed. "Would you three come down here, please?" McCoy watched as Gloria, Jim, and Tom all stood and walked down the steps to the front of the room. "You were on the executioners list?" she asked. It was obvious. Tom uncovered his face, Gloria showed part of an arm, and Jim bared his left shoulder where a long, vicious scar stood out. "Are those your only scars?" she whispered.

"No," Jim responded. "We do have the right to some privacy. We were an inconvenience to Kodos, we chose to live, not die."

"Are any of you members of the Tarsus 9?" she asked. "Did you know JT?"

They answered her questions as best they could. Finally, she turned to the class, "Ladies and Gentlemen, these three present an opportunity not usually available to teachers, much less cadets. Read up on the first chapter. Your first assignment for this class is to write a story about Tarsus IV. You can take the narrative from anyone on the planet: condemned, saved, or executioner. Take the time to talk to them, when they are available for they have their own essays to write, I'm not excusing you from this assignment, and find out their memories of what happened. Keep in mind, they may not want to talk about what happened. They are still healing from a horrific ordeal." The entire class groaned at her words. "We'll talk about it at the next class, dismissed."

Naturally, the professor wanted them available to her other two Ethic's classes as well. Jim and Gloria agreed to be available to them while Tom remained open to this one. They were outside the classroom when they realized they were being approached by one of the male cadets, Jack, who had kept his hand raised when the professor had asked about families. "Please, I need to know. My family and I were off planet when Kodos ordered those deaths. My little sister, Josie, was still on-planet with friends, and we never saw her again. Do you know what happened to Josie Stephens?" Jim and Gloria looked at each other with sorrowful eyes as Tom turned away, barely able to contain his own emotions.


	5. Wildfire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh, well, still don't own them.

Word of three Tarsus IV survivors on the campus spread like wildfire, not just through Starfleet, but through multiple communities throughout the Federation. Anthropologists, Psychologists, Psychiatrists, News Commentators, and families of those who died or were never found on Tarsus IV all wanted in on talking to these people. So many people showed up at the apartment door that McCoy stationed a baseball bat by it.

There were a few he let through the door. Starfleet Admirals and families of those missing and killed were those who were let through. First there was Jack Stephens. He managed to get an old picture of his sister from his mother on his comm. His mother stayed on the line as Jim, Gloria, and Tom stared at the little girl for a long moment before Tom finally answered the question hanging there before them. "I was the one who found, Josie. The family you'd left her with had been on Kodos' execution list, and, like a few, didn't go to the square that night. They thought, since they lived on the outskirts of the colony, they'd at least not draw attention to themselves. Kodos' execution squads were quite thorough."

Tom sighed as he continued, "The farm had been torched, nothing was left, but I heard wailing. It was coming from a basement, and so I cautiously went down the steps to find Josie trapped under the body of a young girl who had been shielding her. I didn't know her name, all she could tell us was that it was Josie. She was very sick, and I picked her up and took her back with us. Gloria, do you know what happened to her? She was still alive when JT and I were captured."

Gloria had been thumbing through her PADD. She had kept up with most of the survivors, even those who weren't part of the nine. "Found her!" she said with glee.

Jack looked up to see a picture of a beautiful young woman at a birthday party, her sixteenth birthday party. People surrounded her that obviously loved her. "Jack?" he heard from the PADD.

Jack choked out, barely more than a whisper, "Josie? Oh, my God, is it really you?" Sobs could be heard over Jack's comm as his mother heard her daughter's voice for the first time since she was three.

"Yes, it's me, Jack. I got lucky, I survived that horrible ordeal, and was sent to a foster home. No one knew who I was and a loving family adopted me," Josie started sobbing. "Mommy?"

"I'm here, baby," Jack's mother replied.

Another voice interrupted, "Hi, I'm Saul, my wife, Sonja and I adopted Josie. We've taken really good care of her, and this is the best birthday present I can think of for our little girl."

"We never stopped looking for you, Josie," Jack choked out.

Sadly, such reunions were few and far between. Most were told that their family members died in the square, at their homes, or, tragically, among the children who struggled to survive in spite of being condemned to death. Archer and Pike stopped by late that night as Gloria and Tom went back to their dorms, "Tough day?"

Jim quirked an eyebrow at the Admiral, "What do you think, John? I still have that essay to write, and I don't have a clue as how to start. I am thinking of it as a journal. A day-to-day diary of that period in my life."

"Should work," Archer responded. "John, huh? Well, I am in your home, informally. What do you want done with the people who want to interview you."

"Tell them to go to hell, sir," Jim quipped. "Give them the papers we write and tell them that's all they're getting. It'll die down in a few days."

Pike smiled, "Jim, you may have noticed a few odd additions to your class schedule."

"Uh, yeah, what am I doing taking classes that start with 'Command' anyway?" Kirk asked.

"We feel you have the ability to take a leadership role. You're one of about twenty incoming Cadets who will be taking these classes that will enable you to take control of a starship if need be. Before you ask, I came across a Starship whose entire ship was so sick, I found myself talking to the Ship's Counselor who had put out the distress beacon. Fortunately, it was just something they had eaten two days before. The reason she wasn't sick, was because she couldn't digest the food presented and knew it." McCoy shook his head in laughter. "No, seriously, she was. She had, fortunately, been through the classes and knew what to do. Oh, before you ask, she already had a degree as a counselor from the University of Betazed, and we really couldn't have her getting too bored."

"Anything else I should know?" Kirk asked.

"No, oh, McCoy, command simulations start in two weeks. Be sure to keep in contact with your assigned team before they start," Pike said to Bones.

As the men left, Bones turned to Jim, "Are you sure about this?"

"Me? Nah, I'm making this up as I go along."

Bones stared at his new friend and started laughing. The year was going to be interesting to say the very least.


	6. New Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And some not so friendly at first. Spock and Kirk clash from the beginning, but not because of something Kirk directly did. Don't own any of them.

The first thing Kirk noticed about the Vulcan Cadet was that he was very, well, Vulcan. His interest was Science, and, while that was his main focus, he was also in some of the Command Classes that Kirk was taking. The second was that he had very few friends. The third, he was attracted to a very human commander named Uhura, and that attraction seemed to be mutual. He couldn't begrudge them their relationship. He'd once found love himself.

Unfortunately, Peter had other ideas. They were headed back from day care on Tuesday when they saw Uhura across the campus headed in their direction with a purposeful stride. A moments inattention at the home of Admiral Mary Johnson and suddenly Peter had pulled up some daisies and was presenting them to the Commander, roots and all. Jim was mortified, Peter was blushing, and Uhura was very kind. Admiral Johnson was understanding, really, she was a mother of three herself, including two boys. Uhura thanked the little boy with a kiss on the top of his head, kissed Jim on the cheek, and continued on her way with a smile.

Apparently, Spock turned into the green-eyed monster, not that he ever showed it, he was Vulcan after all. He became even colder towards Kirk. Fortunately, the few classes science classes they had together that required a lab partner, he had a friend who willingly helped him out, Dr. Geoffrey M'Benga. The man was already a doctor, like him. The Kenyan government paid for his time in medical school in exchange for four years at the national hospital. M'Benga was a couple of years older than he, but they soon became friends.

McCoy, on the other hand, had made a new friend as well, Montgomery Scott. The man hailed from Scotland, and was intent on becoming a helmsman with a command track bent. It happened that way sometimes. The man had short hair that was receding, and the temper that the Scots were famous for, but he was always good to have your back in a fight. He had a sister in Glasgow that had recently married, but was single himself.

As Pike, Archer and the rest of the Admiralty watched this odd assortment of characters come together they realized they needed close observation. They were all brilliant and ruthless in their own ways. Years later, after losing his first real friend to Khan in the warp core chamber, Spock would stay by his bedside for hours on end and wonder how he could have been so antagonistic toward him. He had literally lost his Vulcan mind and beat the crap out of a man because this man died.

After the fallout of the Ethics class, Jim went to work at Starfleet Medical Center rather quickly. He was still a doctor, and accorded the rank of Lieutenant as such in the hospital. At the Academy, he was still a Cadet. He and M'Benga both held that rank, and it rankled some of the up and coming young doctors that they already had such respect. It never occurred to them that Kirk and M'Benga had already put in the time required for such respect. As it was when a shuttle crashed at the nearby air field, Jim took automatic command of the situation and issued the orders that had become so ingrained in him serving in an ER. M'Benga was right behind him assessing as the injured flowed in. Two shuttles collided mid-air, killing six passengers and crew, fifteen were dead on the ground with another fifty needing immediate attention. San Francisco General would normally have handled them, but they were quickly overwhelmed and sent patients to other hospitals. Starfleet never minded this, it gave their newbies a dose of reality on board a Starship.

"Nearly lost that one," Kirk muttered to a nurse as they exited the OR. "Still might, where's the family?" an orderly showed him to the waiting room. Two of the new doctors watched as Jim filled the family in on their loved one's condition. They watched as the older woman was pulled into the tight embrace of her son as she started to sob. Kirk exited the room, "That never gets any easier." He looked up to see M'Benga standing there with a cup in his hand. "Coffee?" Kirk asked. The other doctor nodded as Kirk quickly gulped the hot liquid.

Jim got home that night to find McCoy supervising Jo and Peter's homework, which consisted of coloring books and crayons. Bones had discovered the crock pot a few hours before and had, with Gloria's suggestion, thrown a pot roast and some vegetables in there and let them cook for six hours. Bones looked up, "Long day? Heard about the shuttle accident."

"Yeah, long day, wet behind the nosed would be doctors thinking you don't know half of what they do even though you actually have a Doctor's Degree and have been doing it for a few years. So glad M'Benga's doing this with me."

"The Kenyan doctor? I heard he's applied to the Vulcan Halls of Healing for the summer."

"Good for him," Jim replied cutting up a potato to be eaten.

Peter smiled at his uncle, "Uncle Jim? Why don't you date Commander Uhura?" Jim promptly started to choke. McCoy started patting him on the back while the offending piece of potato eventually went down the right pipe.

"Peter, why are you asking me this question?" Jim finally answered.

"Because I like her, and she's nice, and it would be nice to have an Aunt again," Peter said softly.

Jim sighed, "Peter, it's not that simple. Uhura and I are just friends, and I know she appreciated the flowers, they were very thoughtful. It's just she's seeing somebody else right now and they're very happy together." Bones rolled his eyes at this statement, a Vulcan actually being happy would be a sight to see.

"You deserve to be happy too," Peter replied.

Jim looked away from his young nephew. He could understand where Peter was coming from, he just couldn't face another relationship right now. "Peter, when I find someone, you'll be the first to know, okay?"

Peter nodded and soon the kids were headed off to bed. "He's a good kid, Jim," McCoy said softly.

"I know, Bones, I just wish that things were as simple as they are in his world," Jim replied sadly. McCoy nodded, he knew exactly what Jim was talking about and agreed.


	7. Shuttleport Accident

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yes, there's more to this story than meets the eye. No, no one planned on it happening, accidents do happen. Sometimes, though, people are in the right place at the right time. Say, for example, McCoy, who's deathly afraid of flying, and has been taken there to be shown there's no reason to fear it, it's perfectly safe, and he will be learning to fly one of these very soon. Needless to say, things don't go well, but, poor Bones, he does rise to the occasion. Don't own them.

Professor Greer was a well-meaning San Francisco native who was in charge of flight training for all cadets who would be tasked with flying shuttles and other of the smaller craft that Starfleet operated. So, as they entered the "safe" shuttleport building, Greer started lecturing them on the ins and outs of managing a busy spaceport. Whether it be in San Francisco, Dallas, or Tokyo, how well trained pilots and managers were in conducting space travel kept everyone safe. Well, that was when shit hit the fan. All Greer heard were gasps as the sky lit up with an explosion, and the sound hit them a moment later, along with a lot of broken glass.

It was noted later that McCoy was first on his feet and galvanizing into action. He started telling people where to go and what to do. He was next out onto the landing field where people on the ground were lying around, many wounded, some dead. Pieces of the shuttles had pretty much settled to the ground at that point, so he was in little danger. He remembered a little of the triage techniques that Jim had been buzzing at him, and first managed to assess those who were dead. For lack of a better way to identify them, he rolled them over on to their backs, or left them there if they happened to already be in that position.

Next, McCoy found himself putting tourniquets on several who were suddenly without limbs. He moved on from victim to victim, and eventually found himself helping the paramedics as they came in to assess the situation. When all was said and done, McCoy had shown his command potential in so many respects that he was given a medal of commendation for his efforts. Unfortunately, it hadn't helped his situation any, he was still afraid of flying, especially now after that incident.

Captain Pike finally brought him into his office to talk to him about flying shuttles, "Is there anyway we can talk you into it?"

"Yeah, if Jim Kirk is there with me, learning how to fly it," McCoy replied.

Later, McCoy heard an earful from Kirk, "I'm taking this class because of your fear of flying?"

"Well, that accident the other day didn't help any," McCoy mumbled.

"Of all the cotton-pickin' things I thought you'd talk me into, this wasn't one of them. I'm due in simulator training two hours before this first class!"

"I thought you weren't command track!" McCoy said, perplexed.

"Well, I'm not. They just require someone who's a doctor on sight of any simulator training, just in case something happens. We're not talking flying simulator here, Bones."

McCoy muttered something about getting something to eat as Jo told him to go to bed. Shocked, McCoy turned to look at her. "Well, every time I get grumpy you tell me to go to bed. I think you should do the same," faced with such astonishing logic, McCoy did just that.

McCoy sat between Scotty and Kirk as they waited for their names to be called for the flight simulator. They weren't trusting first year cadets with real shuttles yet, fortunately. McCoy and Kirk had theory out the wazzoo, but this would be the first time that they put theory into practice. "How'd the simulation go?" McCoy asked, trying to take his mind off what was ahead.

"Oh, fine, a few phaser burn, some sore knuckles, and black eye or two, everybody's fine," Kirk replied.

"Wait, I thought that was a simulation!" McCoy said with a strangled look.

"It's third year simulation, not something you'll be involved in for a while yet," Kirk said as Professor Greer exited the simulator, two weary looking cadets leaning on each other as they exited the machine.

"Kirk and McCoy, you're up," Greer snapped. They two men looked at each other with apprehension as they entered the machine. They took off with little effort, and the flight was pretty routine, until an unexpected ion storm hit the shuttle just outside the moon's orbit. Sweating, both men worked feverishly to land the ship at lunar base safely before finally sighing in relief. They'd made it without crashing. "Well, congratulations, Cadets, you're the first to not crash the shuttle today. Of course, everybody else tried to head back to Earth," Greer said with a wry grin. "Go home, I understand you have the rest of the day off."

The two of them trudged back to their apartment, aware that they didn't have to pick the kids up from day care for another two hours. They both needed something to eat and a shower. As they were about to enter the building, they heard a man's voice bellowing across the campus, "Jimmy!"

Bones watched as his best friend turned and his whole face lit up with a smile as he went to hug the stranger, "Frank!"


	8. Frank and Other Strange People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, for some reason, I just can't think of a better title. Go figure. Don't own them.

Frank was one of the biggest men Bones had ever met. There wasn't an ounce of fat on him, yet he was muscular, due to his years as a farmer. McCoy's own father had passed away after a long illness two years before, and saw the easy relationship that Jim had with this man. Frank turned to McCoy, "You must be 'Bones'!" he said with a chuckle.

"Leonard, please," McCoy said with a chuckle, shaking the man's hand. McCoy's hand was practically engulfed by Frank's large, callused hands. "Okay, you two get something to eat, and I'll go get the kids. You know Peter isn't going to stay in school after he hears Grandpa Frank is here."

Both men grinned as Jim promised to start lunch. When McCoy came home with the kids, Kirk and Frank were outside grilling chicken, hamburgers and bratwurst. "Grandpa Frank!" Peter cried and took off running toward the big man. Frank swept the little boy up in his arms as Peter pelted him with questions. Finally, he managed to jump in as the little boy stopped for a breath, "So, who's your friend?"

Peter looked down at Jo, "Oh, that's Jo, she's Uncle Leonard's daughter."

Frank knelt down to Jo's level, "Hi, Jo, I'm Grandpa Frank." Jo reached out and touched Frank's bristly beard. His red hair and beard made her giggle. They looked around as the smell of grilling burgers floated across the campus. Admirals, captains, and cadets all managed to wander over. The admirals contributed more food, captains brought drinks, out of courtesy to the younger set, they avoided alcohol, and the cadets managed to scrounge up paper plates, utensils, and cups. Jim was not only busy, but very popular.

"Has Jim always been so unaware of how good looking he is?" McCoy asked Frank.

"Oh, he was quite aware of it before he met Kitty. Believe me, I had to make sure he knew how to use a condom," he stopped and grinned at Gloria who came over and gave him a peck on the cheek. "Good to see you Gloria! After he married Kitty he was besotted, and so was she. When they returned the bodies from Deneva…" Frank took a deep, shuddering breath. "One of the worst days of my life, I'll tell you. Fortunately, they let us bury the bodies on the farm. The hardest part was they never found the baby." McCoy raised an eyebrow, "Kitty was pregnant, she found out after she arrived on Deneva. Doctor's said she gave birth before she died, but the baby was never found."

"Oh, god, Jim…" McCoy said looking at his best friend. He couldn't even imagine losing Joanna before knowing her. It was a relaxing evening as the setting sun painted colors across the bay. "So, you've never been to San Francisco."

"Not been to many places," Frank replied. "Went off planet once, to Tarsus IV. Wish I'd never made that trip and left Jim there, worst mistake of my life. Marrying his mother was the best mistake of my life. She was a bitch, but I got him and his brother, and I don't need to explain to you what I got out of that."

"Is she still alive?" Bones asked.

"I don't know. She didn't show up for the funeral, thought that would at least attract her attention," Frank looked over in the failing light as Jo and Peter was the center of a gaggle of kids whose parents worked or attended the Academy, or the headquarters. "If Chris, speak of the devil," he smiled at the other man who walked up with another grin, "hadn't shown up with Peter when he did, I have no doubts I would have another grave to add to the farm." McCoy went silent, unable to comprehend his world without both Peter and Jim in it.

"He's a great doctor," McCoy said. "After the shuttleport accident a few days ago, I never thought I'd see him so, well, in charge."

"He'd have been a good command candidate. His father would have been proud," McCoy cocked an eyebrow at him. "Yes, I knew George, good man. We both grew up in a small town, it would have been hard not to have known him. Good, solid man, everyone knew he was going to do great things."

"What about Winona," McCoy had to ask.

"Well, no one was surprised when they got married out of high school, and that they ended up in Starfleet. When she came back to Riverside after George died, she'd changed. She'd doted on Sam before, after, she couldn't control her temper with either boy. Honestly, I married her because I fell in love with the boys."

Pike looked at him, "There's no telling what would have happened to them if you hadn't been there, Frank."

The next day they walked around San Francisco. Frank ended up giving both kids piggy back rides, McCoy smiled as Jo howled with laughter at being so high up. They wound up at a park where they watched as Frank pushed both kids on the swings. "Is he single?" Bones asked.

"Yeah, he divorced Winona when I was away on Tarsus IV. Why? Thinking of introducing him to your mother?" Jim asked.

"Yeah, why not?"

"Frank's a Yankee. Think that will go over well?" Jim asked. McCoy couldn't help it, he started laughing. This was going to be interesting.


	9. Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, back to the story. Months after Frank's visit, two mothers come into play. Hannah McCoy, needless to say, it very different from Winona Kirk. Don't own them.

The semester was ending as the seasons were changing. There was a definite bite in the air. Peter smiled as December approached, he loved the Winter Break. In Iowa they would break out the Yule log and throw it in the fire. There would be some presents that week, depending on which holiday they decided to celebrate it would be on the 21st, 24th, or the 25th. One year they even decided to celebrate Hanukah instead. They'd considered Ramadan, but the fasting bit was something that Peter really didn't want to go through. Jim didn't blame him.

So, the Academy finished the semester a week before the winter solstice, and the cadets went home, or stayed on-campus depending on their situations. Kirk and Peter were headed back to Iowa to stay with Frank. Peter was excited, there wasn't snow in San Francisco, and he missed the snow in Iowa. Bones and Joanna were going with them. They'd decided to spend the first couple of weeks in Iowa, to give Jo a white holiday, and then spend the last two weeks with McCoy's mother, Hanna, in Georgia.

Jo had never seen snow before, and the world outside the car door was very white. She met Jim's grandfather, Tiberius, who came and picked them up at the shuttleport. He was also a big man who smiled down at the kids. McCoy was amazed that the man was still alive, but then again, Johnathan Archer was still alive and he was well over one hundred. Jim sighed as Bones looked around, and, in spite of having his daughter with him, tried to flirt with the local ladies mid-conversation. Jim swore that McCoy sometimes had the attention span of a mosquito, on sugar, with ADD. "Bones, we're not here to pick up women, and we have the kids with us, remember?"

"Huh?" McCoy asked looking up from one particularly lovely red head.

"Never mind," Jim muttered as they loaded the luggage into the back of Tiberius' car. Bones' self-effacing nature and ready smile charmed almost everyone, until his irascible moods occasionally got in the way. "Oh, you should know, when word gets out that I'm here, all the neighbors are going to come over with everything from pneumonia to a hangnail. They get a kick out of harassing the 'country doctor' bit. Oh, your hair is on fire."

"Oh, sure Jim, no problem. I didn't realize it was so beautiful here," Jo giggled at Jim's last statement. "What?" he asked the little girl.

"Nothing Daddy," Jo replied with an impish grin. It was a long ride out to Frank's farm, and the warm porch light greeted them as they approached. Jo got out and looked up. "Look, Daddy, we can see so many stars like we could back home!" Jim nodded, he missed seeing the night sky in San Francisco. The light pollution didn't afford the same view as here. Jim sighed, knowing that he and Bones would be out there amongst those stars soon enough.

Bones chuckled, "Yes, we can. Guess what? In a few years, we'll be out there among those stars, seeing them for ourselves." Jo nodded solemnly and followed Peter into the house. "How many times has Peter been out there?" Bones asked.

"Just the once, he was born on Deneva," Jim replied. Bones said nothing, it was quiet in the house as Peter was showing Jo the room he was sharing with Uncle Jim. Jo would be sharing another with her Father. It was Sam's old room.

Jim and Bones turned as Frank cleared his throat, "Uh, Jim, I think you should know. Winona is not only alive, she's hoping to come visit on Christmas."

Jim started, "What did you tell her?"

"That I'd leave it up to you. I do have an injunction against her that's still active if she trespasses, but if there's any chance that the two of you could mend fences, or at least try…" Frank let the sentence trail off. "Jimmy, I'm as proud of you as if you were my own son. You've come such a long way, whatever you decide is fine by me."

Bones watched Jim as he stared at the warm, inviting living room thoughtfully. "Alright, we all have our own demons to face, don't we? Let her come."

Christmas Day came, and that became the default day of celebration that year. They sat around the Christmas Tree and tore open presents, Jim and McCoy smiled as Joanna giggled at her new doll, and Peter raced around the room with a brand new fire engine. Frank had long since repaired to the kitchen to finish Christmas dinner, and Jim confided in him that Frank was the reason he knew how to cook things in a crock pot. Then, they heard it, the knock at the door. Jim took a deep breath as they both heard Frank answer it and rumble a greeting. They heard a woman's higher pitched answer as the room suddenly went quiet. Peter had never met his paternal grandmother, and with good reason, Sam had felt about her the same way Jim did.

Hesitantly, a woman with hair that was going more silver than blonde, stepped into to foyer bearing gifts. Peter looked back at his Uncle and then at Frank before getting to his feet. "Hello, Ma'am, I'm Peter Kirk. Welcome to our home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peter was obviously brought up with some manners! We'll get to Hannah in the next chapter or two. Nicer reunion there.


	10. Family Reunions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> To say that Winona is surprised by Peter is almost an understatement. Don’t own any of them.

Winona looked down at the boy with a startled look. He looked so much like his father that it almost hurt, almost. “Hello, Peter, I’m Winona, your…grandmother,” she rearranged the packages in her arms and reached down and shook his hand. Peter tilted his head up at her, “It’s alright, you don’t have to call me that. Winona is fine.”

“Win..on…a Winona!” Peter said with a happy smile as he sounded it out. “We’ve already opened presents, but haven’t had dinner yet.” Winona watched as he skipped into the living room. She looked up to see her son, her ex-husband, and another man she didn’t know with a little girl. The little girl was playing with a doll with a dolly’s cradle by the tree.

Jim, the strange man, and Frank stood. The strange man approached, “Hi, I’m Leonard McCoy, Jim’s roommate, this is my daughter Joanna.”

The little girl glanced up, “Hello.”

Winona glanced around the warm living area. “Hello, Winona, good to see you well,” Frank welcomed her.

Jim watched as his mother took a deep, steadying breath and approached him with some trepidation. “Here, let me take these,” Jim finally said, stepping forward. He relieved her of the packages as she handed Frank the broccoli casserole she brought as a dinner offering. Frank nodded and headed with it into the kitchen, assuring everyone that the roast would be done in a couple of hours.

Jo was thrilled to see her name on one of the presents Winona brought, “Christmas is really for kids. I didn’t want to leave her out.” Jo opened the package to find a coloring book filled with sea creatures that live and once lived on the Earth. “I wish Earth still had whales,” Winona said. “I would have loved to have seen one.”

“They were hunted to extinction in the early part of the twenty-first century,” McCoy mused. “The pictures I’ve seen of them, they must have been fantastic to watch.” They watched as Peter unwrapped his present. It was a model of the first USS Enterprise starship, Archer’s NX-01.

“You heard that Captain April came out of retirement to work on that new ship they’re building, Winona, the Enterprise?” Jim asked.

“Robert? Really? How’d they get the old man to come out for that? He hasn’t designed a ship in twenty some odd years!” Winona exclaimed.

“No, idea, I heard Admiral Archer was VERY persuasive,” Jim said with a grin. He sat back and looked out the window at the falling snow, and suddenly had an inspiration. “Okay kiddos, go get your jackets and gloves on! We’re going to build snowmen!” McCoy looked dubiously at the announcement as Peter and Jo scrambled up and upstairs to get their jackets. Jim walked over to gather his as Winona joined him with a gleam in her eyes.

They spent the next several hours rolling snow and finding the normal accoutrements for snowmen, and the occasional snowwoman. Everyone laughed as Jo somehow managed to make her snowwoman glower at her father’s snowman. Finally, Frank called everyone in, dinner was ready. It was only after dinner, and the kids had gone to bed that Winona and Jim finally had a serious talk. “Jim, I wasn’t a good mother, I know. I was grieving.”

Jim sighed, “Winona, I would love to say that it’s alright, and everything is forgiven, but I can’t. I don’t know if everything will. Did you and Sam…” his voice trailed off, not really sure where he wanted to go with this conversation.

Winona sighed, “No, we never got that chance. May I see Peter?”

The plaintive question didn’t completely catch him off-guard, “I think you’ll understand if I require that these be supervised visits. It doesn’t have to be me, but someone I do trust.”

Winona went quiet, after a long pause, “You are his guardian, and with my record, they won’t trust me with another child. Alright, I agree to those conditions when I’m on Earth. I know where to find you, San Francisco. Jim, I’m so sorry about Kitty.”

A lump formed in his throat as he thought of his beautiful wife, “Thank you, Winona. Look, I’m willing to try to work this out, but, just don’t push it, okay? Leonard, the kids, and I are headed for Georgia in the next couple of days to spend some time with his Mom.”

“I still can’t believe you’re a doctor,” Winona said with a chuckle.

Jim grinned over her shoulder, “Neither can Frank. Come see us when you can.”

Frank drove them to the shuttleport and saw them off. He pulled Jim into a big hug, “I’m proud of you, son. Never forget that.” Jim returned the hug and watched as Frank scooped Jo and Peter up off the ground. “Now, remember where I hid all that candy so your Dad and Uncle can’t find them!” Jim turned a mock scowl on the old man. The kids giggled before he put them down. “It was nice seeing you again, Leonard. You and Jo are welcome anytime.” McCoy grinned before taking the proffered hand and shaking it. Thanking Frank before boarding the shuttle.

The shuttle ride took about ten minutes. The difference between the Georgia winter and Iowa winter was dramatic. While it wasn’t sweltering heat, it wasn’t snowing either, and everyone quickly divested themselves of their cold weather gear. They exited the shuttle and Jim watched Bones’ face light up as he spotted a familiar figure waiting for them, “Mother!”

Hannah McCoy resembled her son in many ways. She stood with perfect posture, her hair was dark and her eyes were grey, a cane sat perfectly balanced in front of her with her hands firmly grasping it. In one way, she was very different, she was barely above five feet tall while her son stood at well over six feet. When she smiled, it was the smile she bequeathed both her son and her granddaughter. “Leonard!” she exclaimed, returning the hug he gave her.

“Gramma!” Jo squealed. Hannah bent down and allowed the little girl to wind her arms around her neck. She looked behind Jo and saw Peter standing there nervously, “Hi, you must be Peter.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” he said very solemnly.

“So formal and polite! Why don’t you call me Hannah, or, when you’re more comfortable, Gramma,” she smiled, giving Jim a wink. Peter nodded. Hannah stood, “You must be Jim. Leonard has spoken a lot about you.”

Jim grinned, “And he’s told me a lot about you, ma’am. May I call you Hannah?” he asked.

“Hun, you can call me anything, just don’t call me late for dinner,” she replied. With that, they picked up their luggage and headed for the car.


	11. Black-Eyed Peas and Cornbread

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If this title doesn’t scream “This is a Southern Girl!” I just don’t know what will! lol Don’t own a thing.

The week that stretched between Christmas and New Year’s was filled with the legendary southern hospitality that Jim Kirk had come to expect. Hannah had quickly settled Jim and Peter into their rooms. Rooms wasn’t quite the right word for it. The McCoy house was huge. Bones had mentioned that his mother had given the old estate to his sister and moved into a smaller home, but this was not what Jim expected sixteen bedrooms and bathrooms that were more like suites, two kitchens, three dining rooms, two studies, four libraries, a tennis court, an indoor swimming pool, an outdoor heated swimming pool, a sauna, a spa and a Jacuzzi, and it was considered small.

“Uh, Bones, what does the old home look like?” Jim asked after getting lost on the first day.

“I’ll have to take you and Peter over there this week. Gillian is expecting us, anyway. Wants to spoil her niece,” they watched as Jo raced upstairs. Peter stood beside his uncle, not quite sure to make of this place either. “You should see the pool house out back. It’s got three bedroom and two baths,” Jim nearly choked. He’d never seen anything like this in person, dreamed about it, yes, stayed in it, no. 

They both heard a low chuckle come from their right. “It is small, but we come from money, Jim. I put you and Peter here on the first floor,” she said showing them to the left. They went down a corridor to the first two doors. “These are yours, take your time unpacking,” Hannah left with a chuckle.

Jim stared, the room was at least three times as big as the one he and Peter had occupied in Riverside. Its colors were soft blues and greens. It had a sitting room, a bedroom, and a giant bathroom with real water. 

The bed could easily accommodate four people. Jim looked to the right of the bed and discovered French, double doors that opened up onto a porch affording a view of the countryside. “Is this for me and Peter?” Jim asked incredulously.

“Uh, no, Peter’s room is next door, and it’s a smaller version of this,” Bones said with a chuckle. Jim turned to the big walk-in closet. His clothes and shoes and presents brought from Iowa fit easily inside with a lot of room to spare. Next, they investigated Peter’s room. It was simply a bedroom with an attached bathroom. The bunk beds were in the shapes of starships to Peter’s delight and Jim’s astonishment. Jim helped Peter unpack his stuff and sent him upstairs to find Jo. Bones and Jim found Hannah in the smaller of the two kitchens. She was talking with her cook as the two men entered.

Hannah smiled, “So, are your room acceptable? They’re not too small are they?” Jim’s mouth moved, not quite sure as to how to answer that question.

“They’re fine, Mother,” Bones answered. “Mother was a Starfleet Engineer, Jim, in a civilian capacity. She designed the latest in warp core technology just before she retired.”

“Yes, getting the matter/antimatter mix through the dilithium crystal matrix is always the tricky part,” she said with a grin.

“Wait! You’re THE Dr. Hannah McCoy? I heard your name whispered with reverence at the Riverside shipyards. I helped work on the computer systems for the Enterprise.”

“You’re the Dr. James Tiberius Kirk? I heard about your thesis in computer technology that made the systems on the Enterprise even possible!” Hannah said with astonishment. “You have a double doc,” she said.

“And a Masters in Engineering. I spent a lot of time in Russia, and not just with Kitty,” he said with a sad smile. Hannah looked puzzled at McCoy who mouthed “Deneva” at her. She merely nodded before ushering them into a comfortable living area. A fire had been lit in the fireplace making the room more than comfortable before the kids came roaring down to join them.

Word quickly spread that the town’s most eligible bachelor, along with his equally eligible and good looking roommate, were in town. Almost every single lady, and a few mothers came to call. It didn’t matter that Leonard was divorced and had a daughter, he was rich, and his friend, while not as well off, was a DOCTOR. The wedding band still on his finger did not deter more than a few women from whispering suggestions in his ear. McCoy watched with a grin as he blushed at some of their more blatant suggestions. Often, Hannah found herself chasing them off with a wooden spoon.

By mutual agreement, they did nothing for New Year’s Eve, preferring to stay home and watch the ball drop on the vids with the kids, who were asleep long before midnight. The next day, they all piled into the limo and headed for Gillian’s. The McCoy estate was 45 bedroom suites, and with all the amenities found at her mother’s, only doubled. Plus a house for the chauffer, and any other staff as they saw fit. The house smelled wonderful as they entered, Jim didn’t recognize the odors of cooking foods, but they smelled delicious. No one would tell him what it was either.

Gillian was as warm and inviting as her mother. Her husband and five children joined them. Jim sat down to eat and was surprised at what he was served. “Black-eyed peas and cornbread, just like my mother taught me!” she proclaimed. Each area of the world has their own traditions for the new year, this represented money and good fortune for the coming year. In Iowa, they didn’t eat black-eyed peas, it had never occurred to Jim that it was edible, much less good. He ate it with gusto, “Thank you, Ma’am. May I have some more?”


	12. Some Wounds Never Heal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I know I promised this chapter last night, but my body screamed, “GO TO BED”, so I did. I’m dreading this chapter, it’s supposed to be sad and I hope I just don’t miss the mark. Jim and Bones discuss their marriages on the anniversary of Jim’s marriage. Don’t own them.

McCoy’s first hint that something was wrong was that Jim was quiet during breakfast. He was normally very vocal and playful with both the kids in the morning, but this morning, he barely put two words together. The essay on Tarsus IV was due that day, and Jim turned his in without saying anything. McCoy caught Gloria putting her arms around Jim, even going as far as rubbing circles on his back to try and soothe him.

Jim hardly spoke at all that day. Chris stopped by and spoke to him quietly. It seemed eerie to McCoy that everyone was walking on eggshells around his roommate. When he went to pick Jo up from daycare, he found Gloria there, picking up Peter. Peter didn’t question it, he picked up his bag and followed Gloria out. Bones finally confronted Gloria, she answered, “You need to ask Jim, Len. Maybe I should take Jo as well so you can clear the air.” Reluctantly, McCoy agreed and headed back across the quad to the quarters he shared with Jim.

McCoy found Jim sound asleep on the couch, a photo clutched tightly in his arms. When McCoy got a good look at the photo, he saw it was of Jim with a woman, and they were smiling at each other, and she was in a wedding dress. McCoy realized that the woman must have been Kitty. He slipped back out of the room and headed back to Gloria’s quarters. She was waiting for him, handing him a cup of coffee. The kids were eating dinner. “Today is Jim and Kitty’s wedding anniversary. They would have been married five years today,” Gloria told him.

“And she was pregnant,” McCoy whispered, sipping at the coffee.

“I remember the baby,” Peter suddenly said. Gloria and McCoy turned to him.

“Peter, I know what happened is kind of murky, but what do you remember?” Gloria asked.

Peter’s small face was troubled, “Just before those things struck, Aunt Kitty went into labor. Mom went with her to the medical facility, and three days later, Aunt Kitty returned with a baby girl she named Marina. She was alive and healthy at the time of her return.” Sadness crossed Peter’s face, “I don’t remember much after that, except pain. I think a group of people came and took the baby, she was too small to have one of those things inside her, so they took her to wait for to become old enough to be a host. I never saw her again.”

“Does Jim know?” McCoy asked.

Gloria shook her head, “This is the first I’ve heard of this. You go back to Jim, I’ll call Chris and see if he saw anything like that on Deneva.”

“I’m going back,” McCoy said quietly. “Keep an eye on the kids?” Gloria nodded. McCoy thought back on his own failed marriage. He’d met Jocelyn when they were young, barely out of high school. He’d worked in his father’s law firm, and intended to attend law school. Jocelyn was a debutante whose family was as well off as his own. For the first few years, she’d supported his work and his desire to become something more. Then it all changed, Joanna was born. Joce had been content to play housewife, but when they added a baby to the picture, everything changed. She became distant and moody. A psychiatrist diagnosed her with Post-Partum Depression. For the first six weeks of Jo’s life, Joce couldn’t even look at her.

Then Joce’s demeanor changed, she started playing with Jo and doing everything that a Mother should do. At least that was what it looked like. Then, they disappeared. McCoy came home to an empty house, devoid of everything, even the furniture. McCoy searched frantically for the next four years for them, to no avail. He’d started drinking, heavily. His friends avoided him, and his father died of a disabling illness for which there was no cure. No one, not even his mother, could bring him out of the darkness. Then, one day, Joce showed back up and gave him back Joanna. He didn’t even know she’d been there. He opened the door to hear someone singing softly to themselves. Shocked, he soon realized that the singing came from a little girl and that there were papers on the table. Joce had signed away all legal rights to their little girl, and there were divorce papers there as well. All he had to do was sign them.

McCoy signed them, and got an attorney who told him to agree with the terms. He still had everything, but he had no way to support himself and Jo. That was when he walked into a local Starfleet recruiting office and signed on the dotted line. Four years of education and six years enlistment, he’d be out in the black, with his daughter and a way to make a living without his father’s money.

But Jim, McCoy thought he’d had it bad, but Jim had it worse. He opened the door as Jim started awake, “Hey,” McCoy said softly. “Is that Kitty?” he asked, sitting down on the couch next to him.

Jim started, “Yeah, on our wedding day, she was so happy.”

McCoy sat down on the couch next to him and put his arm around him, “Tell me.”

“I met her in Moscow. I was studying Russian and Engineering there on a break from Med School. She was a student there as well, studying to be a teacher. She took me to meet her family two weeks after we met. She knew that I was the one before I did. We spent every day together, and finally, when I was about to leave, I asked her to come with me. I even proposed marriage. She accepted, and I was on cloud 9. I couldn’t believe that she would accept me, but she did.”

Jim took a deep and steadying breath, “She moved to Iowa, and we were married on the farm.” The picture showed the farmhouse in the distance. “I had finished my last year of medical school and done all the internships and specialties I needed before. We settled into an apartment in town, and I settled into the medical center in town. It wasn’t a hospital, Riverside isn’t big enough for one of those, but we were happy. I even started talking to Sam. I was a little shit, and I didn’t care about my family for many years. Winona’s beatings took that away from me, I didn’t have memories of a kind woman that was my mother, and Sam did. She married Frank when I was five, and he, as you saw, is a decent man, who tried hard to stop the abuse. He still wishes he didn’t send me to Tarsus IV, but, he didn’t see that he had any choice in the matter.

“Then, the medical center closed down. I didn’t want to leave Riverside, so I went to work at the shipyards. My engineering and computer docs coming in handy there. Sam contacted me, he and Aurelan wanted me and Kitty to go to Deneva, they needed a doctor, and I needed a fresh start in life. I agreed, but it would still be several months before my contract with the shipyards was up, and I couldn’t leave until then. So, Kitty went. We thought she was pregnant before she left, but weren’t sure. She promised that she’d check with the midwives when she got there.

“The very last transmission I received from them was from Aurelan saying they were headed for the hospital, and that Kitty was in labor. I never talked to or saw her again. I think the last thing I said to her was that I loved her. I hope it was.” Jim breathed a sigh, “I don’t even know what happened to the baby, if it was a boy or a girl. Doesn’t matter, the baby’s is probably dead as well. I will never get closure on this, Bones. All I have left is Peter.” Bones noticed the tears streaming down Jim’s face, and he pulled the man into a hug, letting all the stress and tears be poured out onto his cadet red uniform.

They spent the rest of the night getting very, very drunk.


	13. Summertime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s the end of their first year at Starfleet Academy, and Jim and Leonard have to think about the First Grade for Peter and Joanna. Starfleet handled Kindergarten just fine, but it’s off to the public schools of San Francisco for the First Grade, and they are given more advice than they know what to do with. Fortunately, McCoy’s family’s money has money. Don’t own them.

Peter and Kirk sat down on the couch. The brochures San Francisco and Starfleet sent them on the educational system being very helpful, and very confusing. Jim discovered that Bones decided to take the easy route, a local private school run by Mrs. Donna Ames. None of the schools that they’d seen had really appealed to either Peter or Jim, and they really needed to make a decision before they returned to Iowa for the summer.

“I liked Mrs. Dowers,” Peter said in a small voice. Mrs. Dowers had been one of three kindergarten teachers at the first primary school they’d looked at. It was a good school, its students consistently ranked high in globally ranked standardized tests, it just didn’t feel right. “I wish we could afford Mrs. Ames though,” Peter said in a small voice. Jim sighed, Peter wasn’t the only one. Mrs. Ames’ school was filled with bright colors and a fantastic library with more actual books than either one of them had ever seen. Donna Ames had mentioned something about scholarships, but Kirk wasn’t very hopeful. He’d applied for several of them on the off chance that Peter would get one.

Jim sighed as he finally put his nephew to bed. As he sighed into the couch McCoy came in with Joanna, “Jim! There’s another scholarship that you qualify for! You’d probably be the only one applying for it,” Joanna stood beaming. Apparently, she’d been the one who’d spotted it. She practically shoved the application at Jim.

“Family and descendants of Tarsus IV?” Jim asked. “I would never have thought to ask about something like this.”

“I went through their website,” Jo told him. “I was hoping there would be something. It’s a 500,000 credit scholarship pot that would more than pay through high school even with books and uniforms.” Jo pulled out her PADD and pulled up the site with the information listed. Jim sat contemplating the scholarship. It was one that had been added about ten years ago, just after he’d left the planet. No one had applied for it yet.

Jo had long since joined Peter in dream land when Bones came back in. “You don’t have to, you know, but I think Peter would be much happier there. He’s a smart kid and they teach with an aim toward how fast or slow the kids learn.” Jim nodded, making up his mind. He filled out the information requested, and added permission for Starfleet to release his records regarding his time on Tarsus IV.

It was a week before he heard anything back from the Academy, and it sounded like the poor woman was hyperventilating over the comm, “You’re really one of the survivors? You’re the first person to apply for the scholarship, and check out as a survivor. This is UNBELIEVABLE! Of course you’re nephew is accepted with a full scholarship! Come two weeks before the start of term and we’ll release the funds for his uniforms!” Jim shook his head, it was just as well they didn’t have to worry about room and board.

Jim and Peter and Gloria said their good-byes with Leonard and Joanna two days after that distinctly one-sided conversation. All three of them had ranked at the top of their classes and their respective tracks.

Returning to Iowa was returning home, even if it was for a few months. Frank came and got them and they all settled back into the farm, and watched the fields grow golden with the various crops they planted. Jim got out on horseback and corralled the cattle back into the barn at night. He was a competent horseman, and loved riding out on the range, or going over to the neighbors and visiting. He wondered if McCoy rode with a chuckle, with all that money he just might. Peter was joining him now. They found a pony for him to ride, a young Shetland that was as hardy as its breed suggested it would be. Frank had found it after Scotty had suggested a reputable breeder in Nebraska. Frank took care of the crops, although it was largely an automated process. He would occasionally get out and inspect the fields. He called the blacksmith when a horse needed shoeing, and was there when a new calf was born to Peter’s favorite cow. A young heifer Peter had named Spot.

One day Jim dropped Peter off with Mrs. Demarka for a visit. Angela was delighted, and Jim had received a very distressed call from the Riverside Shipyards, begging him to come in and help with an Engineering glitch on one of the smaller vessels they were working on. It was fortunate he was there. He rolled up into the yards when one of the massive engines fell apart electrocuting three and falling on a dozen others. He put an immediate call into a nearby hospital, alerting them that casualties were headed their way, then he ran over to the switch powering the live cables and turning it off.

Jim resuscitated two of the three electrocutions, and managed to stop severe bleeding in most of the crush injuries. There was nothing he could do about internal injuries, but he set up his own triage, keeping a mental list of who needed to evacuate now, who could wait, and who needed to be made more comfortable. Then, after all was said and done, he made the assessment of the engine, whether or not it could be salvaged, and started the investigation over the accident. It was doubtful he would be there to complete it. Finally, when all was said and done, he found himself writing a report to Starfleet on the incident. The whole thing was a tragedy, five people out of fifteen died, and the chief engineer was one of them. Starfleet asked him to take over the job until they could get someone else out there, or he needed to get back to the Academy, whichever came first.

McCoy, on the other hand, found himself doing many of the same things. His family’s estate had horses and he would have been amazed to discover that he and Jim had that in common. He rode out on his favorite bay. Jo had her own pony and she often joined her father on his excursions. He also found himself being flooded by Starfleet in terms of Command Track seminars and manuals that he had to keep up with. He had to be back in San Francisco three weeks earlier than Jim to start those seminars. Jim would also have had to if he already wasn’t a doctor. Hannah had promised to let Jo stay in Georgia until Jim would be on his way to San Francisco himself.

It was an idyllic summer that ended all too soon. Bones headed back for his first command seminar where he heard the first whispers of an accident at the Riverside Shipyards.


	14. Return to San Francisco

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, I think the name says it all. Don’t own them.

Jim looked up from his desk at the Riverside Shipyards. The paperwork was ridiculous. They had to redesign everything on the side of the ship that fell apart. They were fortunate that it wasn’t the Enterprise. That ship was almost ready to be towed into space and taken to the Utopia Planitia Shipyards on Mars. There, the final stages of the Warp Core and engines would be installed. It was done in a place where the fewest numbers of lives would be at stake. Matter/Antimatter mixes were the most precarious of stages in building starships, and the limited atmosphere on Mars meant settlements were far from the shipyards, and repercussions wouldn’t affect them.

Jim was waiting to see the ship being towed off safely before he left for San Francisco. He and Peter would make one stop on the way. They were stopping off to pick up Joanna on their way. Yes, it was out of the way, but it meant that Jo could stay with her grandma and friends in Georgia a few weeks longer when her father went back to the Academy.

Jim looked up as there was a knock at the door to find Captain Robert April standing in the doorway, “Dr. Kirk?”

Jim smiled, “You must be Captain April. My mother told me about you.”

“Winona is your mother?” April asked. Jim nodded, “And you’re sane?”

“She remarried a man named Frank, who was quite sane, and a good man. He’s the reason I am sane. You’re here to take over the project?” Jim asked.

“That, and watch my favorite lady headed for Mars,” April said. Jim grinned as he got up from the desk. April followed him out into the yards. They watched as five tow ships entered the atmosphere and descended to the Enterprise. They positioned themselves around the ship and deployed the tow lasers before heading upward. This had been done so many times that it was down to a science. April and Kirk watched as the ships effortlessly pulled the giant ship up off the ground and out of the atmosphere. “I can’t wait to see her fly in space under her own power,” April said with a grin.

“Me too,” Jim said. “Come on, I need to brief you on a few things. Including that accident a few weeks ago.” It turned out that it had been an accident. “The details are in the report, Captain,” Jim said standing in front of the desk that April slid behind. “I’m flying back to San Francisco tomorrow.”

“At ease, Cadet, you’ve done fine work. Are you sure you want to be a doctor? You’re a damn fine engineer.”

Jim chuckled, “I’m already a doctor, Captain. Engineering’s just a hobby. Anything else, Captain? I need to get back home and finish packing.”

“No, Cadet, good luck. Although, you probably don’t need it,” April stepped forward and shook Kirk’s hand.

The next morning Frank drove them to the shuttleport. Frank gave Peter and Jim big hugs. “Don’t be strangers, Jim. At the very latest, I’ll see you in December.” Frank watched as both of them entered the shuttle. He sighed as the shuttle took off for Georgia.

Hannah stood with her Granddaughter, Joanna, waiting for the shuttle’s arrival. Jo was rocking back and forth with excitement. Hannah could barely remember being this excited about starting school. She watched as Jim and Peter exited the shuttle and walked down the concourse toward them. “Jim! Peter!” Jo called running toward them.

“Hello, Jo, nice to see you too!” Jim laughed as she ran into him in her haste to give him a hug. “Nice to see you, Mrs. McCoy,” he said to Hannah.

“You too, Jim, Peter. You take good care of them, hear?” Jim chuckled agreement as they turned to board the shuttle back to San Francisco.

It was strange, they arrived in San Francisco an hour before they left Iowa. And they said time travel wasn’t possible! Jim gathered their belongings and exited the shuttle before hailing a taxi to the Academy. It was quiet as returning cadets shuffled through intake to find out where they would be living for the next year. New recruits wouldn’t actually show up for another two weeks. Jim approached the table with his last name and was given the same apartment he had last year, and was told that the McCoys would be there as well. “We’ll be sending you a schedule for the rest of the summer’s seminars starting Monday. We know that you have to get Jo and Peter settled before then.

Jim headed for the apartment where they dropped off their stuff, noting that Bones had already made his mark, and headed for daycare where arrangements were made for transportation to Mrs. Ames’ Academy at the beginning of the year. He and Peter were due to visit the Academy tomorrow, so they went to the Exchange to buy food and other necessities that he was sure McCoy would have forgotten. When they returned, they found Bones sitting on the couch. “Oh, hi everybody!” McCoy said with a grin. “Nice to see you’ve returned, with food!”

Jim laughed, always the mundane stuff, “Peter and I are headed for Ames’ Academy tomorrow so we can prepare for the new school year.”

“Yeah, I’ll be going with Jo as well. Need to pick up a supply list,” McCoy said. “Hey, is it true what they said? There was an accident at the Riverside Shipyards?”

“Yes, there was, and no, the Enterprise wasn’t affected. She’s currently on Mars having her engines built,” Jim replied, putting away the groceries. “How were the seminars?”

“Mostly long and boring,” McCoy answered. “Although, the ones given by actual ship captains, like Pike and Archer, were actually very interesting.”

“Really?” Jim asked. “Well, I start Medical seminars on Monday. I bet they’ll be just as boring.” McCoy laughed. It was good to be home.


	15. First Day Blues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kids are back in school a week earlier than the adults. Which basically means for that first day of school, Jim and Leonard are able to drop them off and pick them up, and meet their teacher. Don’t own them.

“Uncle Jim? Why do I have to wear a tie? You don’t have to wear a tie!” Peter said sulkily.

“It’s part of the school uniform, Peter,” Jim replied. He was donning the cadet reds as he spoke.

“You don’t have to wear a tie with your uniform,” Peter once again stated.

“Well, you don’t have to wear a silly hat either,” Jim replied carrying his hat under his arm. Jim sat down on the edge of Peter’s bed and helped him tie the tie. He’d had plenty of practice as a student doctor, and then a full blown doctor. “Now, remember, either McCoy or I will be there to pick you up today, unless we call and tell the school to let you know to get on the bus back to the Academy, alright?” Peter gulped as he nodded. “Our last seminars let out half an hour before your school does, so there shouldn’t be a problem.”

“I love you, Uncle Jim,” Peter said.

“I love you too, Peter,” Jim replied, giving the small boy a hug. Peter’s uniform was pretty typical: white button down shirt, navy slacks, and navy jacket with a navy or black tie and black shoes. Silly hats were not optional. He headed out of their rooms with Peter close behind and saw Joanna similarly attired waiting for Jim to fix breakfast. Jim donned an apron and commenced with breakfast. Blueberry pancakes with maple syrup, eggs, sausage and toast. Pancakes were a messy affair. Bones straggled in for the eating portion of breakfast, silly hat in hand, and ate what was put in front of him.

They checked out a Starfleet vehicle before heading out into San Francisco’s morning traffic. The kids were talking excitedly about their first day of school. They’re teacher was Mr. Kinsdale, a human from the Lunar Colony who had to leave the moon at eight years when they discovered he had motion sickness. On something that has little gravity outside the domes, that was a definite problem. He had adjusted rather well to life on Earth, and greeted all of the children in his class as their nervous parents dropped them off.

“Mr. Kirk, Mr. McCoy, I’m glad to finally meet you,” he said with a broad smile. He was short, barely topping 5’4” tall, trim, and had brown hair and hazel eyes. He was also, by all reports, an excellent teacher. “You must be Peter and Joanna,” they looked up at him, startled. “Go on in and join the rest of the class. I’ll be showing everybody what to do with their stuff once the bell rings, alright?” they both nodded and scampered off to class. “Yes, Mrs. Ames told me that you’ll be picking up your nephew and daughter today after class, unless something comes up and I’m notified by the school. In that case the Academy Daycare will take care of it. Go on, you two, bell’s about to ring.” At the mention of the bell, it sounded in the corridor and delinquent pupils scurried to their classes.

They turned as Mr. Kinsdale entered the classroom and spoke to the kids sitting on the rug in front of him. Soon, he was showing where to put their stuff and other areas of interest around the room. Jim grinned at Leonard as they exited the building. “What’s your first class?” Jim asked.

“’Alien Linguistics: What Not to Do When a Klingon Comes Up and Head Butts You’, you?” Leonard asked.

“’Alien Anatomy: What’s the Southbound End of a Northbound Horta’,” Jim said with a laugh. “Whoever came up with the names this year has a definite sense of humor.” They pulled back into the Academy grounds and checked in their car. “Geoffrey!” Jim called. “How was Vulcan?” The Kenyan doctor had spent the summer learning about Vulcan Healing on Vulcan of all places.

McCoy left them as M’Benga replied, “Hot, dry, and not enough oxygen. It took me three weeks to adjust to the thinner atmosphere!” All three men stopped as they witnessed the new recruits entering the Academy grounds and looking around confused. “Did we look like that last year?” M’Benga asked.

“Yep!” Jim said as they headed across the grounds.

Soon, McCoy caught up with Gary Mitchell and Gloria, both old friends of Jim’s whom he had shared classes and seminars with recently. “So, did you go through the required reading?” Leonard asked.

“Dreadfully dull,” Gloria replied. “You’d think that Klingons would have come up with one word that meant ‘peace’ instead of twenty words that meant ‘war’.”

Gary laughed, “And Eskimos have fifty words for ‘snow’ isn’t it?”

“Something like that,” Leonard said.

It was difficult to pay attention to some of the instructors, they droned. Sometimes they had pretty little pictures. Others had war games of sorts. They were called ‘tactical analysis in real time situation’, but everyone knew what they really were. Unfortunately, two cadets broke their legs, and McCoy ended up in the hospital with a fractured collarbone when he collided with an unplanned tree. He swore it jumped out at him and moved back to the same spot when he looked back up. Jim picked him up on the way back from getting the kids. Dissection was apparently less dangerous than Lieutenant Meely’s Tactics Seminar. McCoy’s arm would be in a sling for a week.

The next day McCoy and Kirk found himself in charge of the new recruits, giving them lectures on what and what not to do. “The Academy doesn’t have a curfew on the weekends, but you still have to sign out and in, along with your intended destination and when you expect to return. This of course does not include the breaks that the Academy has. Be sure to be back on the day you say you’ll be back, or Starfleet will come looking for you. This is a military organization, don’t let the ‘Peacekeeping Force’ fool you. You’re receiving room, board, and the best education on Earth in exchange for four years service, minimum. Just be glad you don’t have to pay for it,” Jim said.

“Every cadet of a higher year than you is senior to you,” McCoy came in. “Doesn’t matter what track they’re in. Some, like Dr. Kirk here,” McCoy grinned at Kirk. “Hold an actual rank. He is an actual physician. The education he’s getting here is what he didn’t get at his old school. Off-campus and in uniform, you’d actually salute him.” Jim rolled his eyes. “Tomorrow, you’ll be going through your physicals and starting your physical training. Those of you with families, this’ll work on a different schedule than others.” This lecture went on and on reiterating what the cadets should have read up on by now. “Alright, time for lunch, dismissed.”

“Is it time for lunch, really?” Jim asked.

“My stomach’s complaining,” Leonard replied.

“Huh, my stomach’s not done that in, well, since I left Tarsus IV,” Jim’s PADD lit up as an incoming e-mail was put through. “Huh,” Jim said.

“What is it?” Leonard asked.

“That story we wrote last year on Tarsus IV. Apparently, my journal won first prize,” Jim kept walking, never noticing that a new cadet was watching him very closely, his eyes never left him as he crossed to the school cafeteria.


	16. Odds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jim and Leonard spend the first week of school on an actual starship being tutored by Captain Pike himself. Gloria takes the kids, her first cruise begins the day they return. So, let the fun begin.

The shuttle docked on the USS Antares. Jim was already missing Peter. He knew the kids were in good hands, and he knew that these cruises were designed to help the cadets become familiar with the way a starship operated. They were the first twenty to board a starship, and they would do this twice a year until they graduated. Sometimes they might be assigned to a space station or an outpost, but the results would be the same. The Antares was one of those Generational Ships, but to bring the kids for only a week would disrupt their routine.

They exited the shuttle and looked around as Captain Pike and his first officer, Commander Nyota Uhura, stepped up to greet them. “Welcome ladies and gentlemen, to the USS Antares, here you will start to learn your roles on a starship. My senior officers are here to take you to where you will work. Command Track will go with me. Science will follow Commander Uhura. Medical will go with Dr. Puri, and Security will go with Lieutenant Alexander Scott,” the two others mentioned stepped forward and nodded their heads. “Dismissed to your departments,” Pike announced.

Leonard smiled briefly at Jim before parting ways. Jim stood before Dr. Puri waiting for word as to what to do. Dr. Puri smiled, “You’ll find your room assignments on your PADDs. I understand there are two actual doctors here?” Jim and Geoffrey nodded at him. “Well, at least you won’t need help in the Sickbay,” this elicited a chuckle. “Well, let’s go, you’ll get your first introduction to the day-to-day running of Sickbay.” He left with his group of five trailing him.

Dr. Puri wasted no time taking them in and putting them to work. Kirk and M’Benga found themselves talking to patients and putting them at ease while assessing their conditions. The majority seemed to stem from some bad apples that had come on board and had been served to the crew in the morning before’s breakfast. A hypo took care of most of those stomach woes rather quickly. Jim shook his head as these cases were easily taken care of. The next crewman miss stepped around a Jeffries tube and fallen straight down it and onto the Engineering deck breaking his leg in multiple places. Puri ventured over and watched Kirk deal competently with the injury. He also watched M’Benga help a human woman, in the early stages of labor, get more comfortably settled.

That, unfortunately, was the easy part. The other three cadets were generally getting in the way and not watching what the biobeds actually told them. Jim chuckled, Cadet Ron Nickelson had actually assumed that Kirk knew nothing about medicine when they entered the Academy, and told him not to worry, he’d catch up. Not to him, of course. It was nice to see the snot-nosed brat flummoxed when Kirk was given his first shifts at the hospital, and the rank of Lieutenant.

\-----------------------------------------------

Christopher looked at the group of cadets in front of him, “Alright, none of you are going to sit in the center chair this trip, but you’ll learn to put other skills to use, such as managing people, navigating the stars, shooting phasers and photon torpedoes. Well, you should get the idea. Come on, I’ll show you the bridge and other areas you’ll need to know.” He glanced back to watch Kirk and M’Benga following Puri through the shuttle bay and toward Sickbay. “Well, let’s go.” They were shown the bridge and taken through the different stations. McCoy was suitably impressed, and had excelled, surprisingly in his mind, at Navigation in the first year. He volunteered to start with Navigation as his first rotation. They would all end up visiting other departments as the week went on, but this was the start.

Each cadet volunteered to take a different duty that day, and Pike was pleased by the volunteers. “Alright, there is one cadet a day who will have the opportunity to follow in my footsteps, so to speak, and see what I, or Commander Uhura, my first officer, does when we take command. This time I choose…McCoy. Report to me at 0800 hours tomorrow, Cadet. You’ll get your chance at Navigation later.”

McCoy and Kirk found themselves sharing a room on the ship. McCoy wasn’t really surprised, they worked well together. They were looking at their shirts Medical Blue and Command Yellow. Kirk’s shirt had lieutenant’s stripes on it, the rank he wore while on duty at the hospital. McCoy was unfortunately a lowly Ensign.

Jim laughed, “You’d think you’d been insulted, Bones, everyone has to start somewhere.”

“Well, I don’t intend to stay a lowly Ensign,” Bones grumbled. They called Jo and Peter and found that they were missed, not surprisingly. Peter and Jim hadn’t been separated longer than a few hours since Peter had landed on Jim’s doorstep.

“I miss you Uncle Jim,” Peter said, lip quivering.

“I miss you too, Peter, I’ll be home by the end of the week.”

“Daddy, come home soon!” Jo wailed. “I miss you!

“I miss you too, sweetheart. Be good for Gloria, okay?” she nodded mournfully. They cut the connection. “You’d think we were going to die,” McCoy muttered. He rolled over into an uneasy sleep. Space was not his natural habitat, but it was going to have to be. He knew it, and hoped it would become easier.

 


	17. Parisi Squares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We never actually saw a game of this played, but the feral grin Worf wore in that episode of the Next Generation was priceless. Only real thing we know about this game, other than Klingons love it, is it’s dangerous, and people tend to get hurt. So, guess what McCoy gets involved in since Jo’s back on Earth and he’s not. Don’t own them.

Gloria had taken the kids to the park. It was a beautiful, sunny day, and the boys were due back in two days. She didn’t have classes and Jo and Peter had gotten restless after school. She fed them and off they went to the park to burn off energy. This park sat close to the daycare on Academy grounds for the families of Starfleet and Federation Personnel. Gloria sat conversing with the wife of the Betazoid Ambassador, Carthala, as they watched the kids play.

“So, are they yours,” Carthala asked.

“No, Peter’s uncle and Jo’s father are on their first training cruise this week. I volunteered to take them. Figured they’d feel more comfortable around someone they were close to,” Gloria replied.

Carthala smiled at Gloria and the kids, “You’re a good friend.”

“So are they,” Gloria replied. She glanced around, she kept thinking somebody was watching her.

Carthala looked up, “There’s a young man behind us who thinks he knows you. His name is Kevin Riley.”

Gloria glanced at the telepath before turning around. Sure enough there stood a young cadet, staring at her. They locked eyes and Gloria smiled. It had been a long time since she’d seen her young friend.

_________________________________

Jim sat back in his chair, covering his face. He’d just gotten off the comm with Gloria. Kev was alive, and at the Academy. Jim let out a slow exhale. He wondered how many more of his kids were still alive, not just the Tarsus 9. He glanced around missing Peter so very much when his comm went off again. “Jim, we need you down in Sickbay. Aftermath of the Parisi Squares game they held earlier.”

Jim sighed, the likelihood that Bones wasn’t involved in that game was slim to none. He wouldn’t do this on Earth where he’d have to immediately explain to Jo where he got the bumps and bruises, no, he had to do it on the Antares, where the only people he’d have to explain it to were Jim and Captain Pike. So, Jim pulled on his blue shirt and headed for Sickbay.

Jim really couldn’t say that he was entirely surprised to encounter Spock in the turbolift with McCoy slung over one shoulder, headed for sickbay. He and Spock nodded at each other as the doors closed. McCoy was conscious, at least he was moaning. “How many trips have you made to the Sickbay like this, Spock?” Jim asked.

“Just this one, we ran out of wheelchairs an hour ago. This was the only way to get Leonard to Sickbay,” Spock replied matter-of-factly.

McCoy muttered something that sounded like, “Green-blooded hobgoblin” before Spock shifted him into a more comfortable position on his shoulder.

“How is Peter?” Spock asked, trying to make conversation.

“Talked to Gloria a few minutes ago. He and Jo apparently are doing fine. She ran into Kevin Riley at the park,” Spock looked at Jim blankly. “Kev was one of the Tarsus 9.”

“Ah, that’s right, you were also on Tarsus. You are JT, are you not?” Spock asked.

Jim stared at him, “No one’s guessed that, ever. How did you come to that conclusion?”

“JT—James Tiberius, a logical connection, but not if you’re not looking for it,” Spock said with half a shrug. The turbolift doors opened into Sickbay. “Do not worry, Doctor, I will not tell anyone,” Spock said softly as he walked over to the nearest empty biobed and deposited McCoy.

“Thank you,” Jim said as Spock left. McCoy was a mess. “How do you manage to do this to yourself?” Jim asked McCoy. Leonard just moaned. Two black eyes, a broken nose, a hairline fracture of the jaw, two breaks in the ulna on his right arm, and both big toes were broken. He also had a mess of bruises that Jim hadn’t seen since, well, Tarsus IV.

“Okay, Bones, I’m giving you a sedative and something for the pain, because, this ain’t gonna be pretty,” Jim said before injecting two hypos into Leonard’s neck. Leonard was out like a light.

Dr. Puri walked over as Jim was running the regenerator over the last of Leonard’s injuries, the broken right toe, “Wow, he made a mess of himself, didn’t he?”

Jim shook his head, “He always does.”

 


	18. An Old Ship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The USS Antares is an old ship, used mainly for training cruises. This is what happens when the unexpected happens. Don’t own them.

“Orion slavers, god I hate them,” McCoy muttered under his breath. “Red Alert! Captain Pike to the Bridge!”

The USS Antares was an aging vessel who was put out for training runs. Due to have been decommissioned years ago, no one had had the heart to scrap it. So, now, an inexperienced cadet was firing back at a hostile ship hell bent on keeping its valuable cargo. The crew of the Antares was just as determined to rescue said cargo.

“What the hell is going on?” Pike bellowed.

McCoy vacated the center seat, “We were on routine patrol when we encountered that Orion Slave vessel. We were keeping to our treaty when we noticed that they were in violation of it. Five Betazoid and two human life signs are registered in the cargo hold.”

Slavery was a nasty business, and the Orions wrote into their treaties that five species, including their own, could be owned, sold, and traded as slaves. Humans and Betazoids were NOT among them. “So, you tried to contact them and have them release their contraband?” Pike asked.

“Yes, sir, they fired on us,” McCoy replied.

“Everyone knows the penalty for slave trade, Cadet. Lieutenant, hole the bridge,” Pike said grimly.

“Yes, sir,” the weapons lieutenant replied. There were two sentences for death in the Federation: Talos IV and illegal slave trade. The captain and his crew had just sentenced themselves to that. “Locking phasers,” the action was quick as there was a direct hit. “Bridge has been holed, Captain. What’s left of the crew is surrendering.”

“Good, take the ship into the shuttle bay. I want medical to check over the ‘cargo’.”

Jim found himself down in the shuttle bay awaiting the ship. It was large enough to barely fit. The security commander, Johanson, opened the hatch of the ship and everyone entered quietly. Fifteen Orion crewmen were standing immediately inside with their hands up. Jim nodded, they were fine. He watched as they were taken to the brig. Jim and several medical personnel followed them to the cargo hold.

There weren’t two humans on board, there were fifteen, and the five Betazoids were actually thirty. Most of them were children. Jim ran a tricorder over each of the children, hoping that they would have relatives back on Earth. One little girls, two years older than Peter, made his tricorder ping. He reached down and brought the little girl’s chin up, “Penny?” The girl drew away from him, whimpering.

“Papa? You’re dead!” she cried.

“Penny, I’m your Uncle Jim. I thought you were dead!” The rest of the medical staff were having dings of matching DNA from their tricorders. The children were all purportedly dead, from Deneva. The girl’s blonde hair was long and stringy, dirty from not being washed. She hadn’t bathed in at least weeks. “Don’t worry, you’re safe. Peter’s back on Earth too.”

Penny reached over and pulled a doll to her and started crying. One of the nurses came over to talk to Jim, “They’re all from Deneva, the humans anyway.”

Penny sat cradled in Jim’s lap as Pike spoke to him in his office. “There were so many dead and dying. We couldn’t keep track. You have to remember, Jim, at least half of the population was killed on Deneva. It’s more than possible that we misidentified some of the bodies.” Jim nodded his head. “How is the cargo?”

“They’ll…live, the Orions and others who were legal items don’t want to go back,” Jim murmured.

“That’s understandable, we’ll let the Federation authorities deal with them. Go back to your quarters, Jim. We’ll be back on Earth tomorrow.”

Jim sent a quick note to Gloria, “Please by necessities for a little girl, age 8.” Inquiries were already coming in about the identities of the children found. Desperate families on Earth who wanted something from the disaster that was Deneva. Uhura stayed with Penny as she got a shower and cleaned up. She slept beside Jim that night, clinging onto him as if her life depended on him.

Peter, Jo, and Gloria met the shuttle the next morning. Penny was hiding behind her Uncle Jim as they disembarked from the shuttle. She peered out from behind Jim’s leg and saw Peter and started crying. Peter practically flew to her and put his arms around his older sister. Jo joined them whispering soft, comforting words to both of them. When they got back to their quarters, another bed had been added to Peter’s bedroom, as well as a privacy screen. Gloria helped Penny change clothes from the rags she had been forced to wear.

Jim and Bones sat down on the couch after the kids had been put to bed. They were quiet, “I suppose I should contact Mrs. Ames in the morning,” Jim finally said, breaking the quiet. McCoy nodded. Starfleet excused Jim the next day to make arrangements for his niece. She was extremely shy when she met with the headmistress.

“We’ll start her in a multi-level class. This is where kids who are in positions like hers can come together in a group environment. We don’t know what her levels of education are, but this type of environment will help us sort it out. I’m having one of our counselors go get her uniforms and other supplies, Doctor. If you would follow me?”

Jim was allowed in with Penny who was very introverted. She hid behind Jim who sat on the floor with the other kids. Slowly, gradually, she was being drawn out. Another little girl about her age named Hestia came over and asked her to play. She was lead to some Lincoln Logs, where they devised a way to build new and startling buildings. After about an hour Penny very solemnly declared that she would see Uncle Jim at Daycare after HE got out of school.

Jim laughed at the resiliency of youth, “Well, I’ve been schooled.” Penny’s teacher chuckled. Jim couldn’t help but wonder if there was another child out there that was his and Kitty’s that no one had found yet. He hoped that child had not become the victim of slavers.


	19. Screaming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Somebody’s having nightmares, and Jim is powerless to stop it. So he asks for help. Don’t own any of them.

For the fourth night since returning her rescue, Penny woke screaming, “Don’t touch me! Please! Don’t hurt me! I’ll be good!” Jim hauled himself out of bed and went into Peter and Penny’s room. It was 0200, and he was unprepared for the level of trauma Penny had endured. His heart ached for the little girl as he pulled her out of her bed, whimpering, and took her back to his.

Penny clung to him as he whispered soft words and rocked her back and forth. She gradually calmed and fell asleep. Jim couldn’t sleep. He’d seen the whiplashes on Penny’s back from the cruel slavers who never thought that another human would see them. In many ways they echoed the ones on his own back. He was taking Penny to Starfleet General tomorrow to have a regen unit over her scars and to see a counselor. He had seen one after Tarsus IV, and Peter had seen one after coming to Earth after Deneva.

McCoy was still in bed, it was Saturday after all. Joanna was up watching cartoons. Jim made breakfast, and watched cartoons with the kids before Leonard wandered through the kitchen sounding more like the living dead than the just plain living. “Morning,” he moaned.

“Morning!” came the all too cheerful chorus.

“How did I get saddled with living with a bunch of morning people?” he groused. Jo giggled as her father poured himself a cup of coffee. “What going on today?” he asked as he dropped onto the couch.

“I’m taking Penny in to see the doctors. Would you mind looking after Peter?” Jim asked.

“Naw, don’t mind one bit,” McCoy said smiling at the little boy. Peter smiled back, he and Jo had homework to do, but that was later. Jim sent Penny to get dressed and Jim also went into get dressed. He came back out in cadet reds, he was going to Starfleet General, and stuck his tongue out at Leonard who was still in pajamas and fuzzy slippers. “Hey, I’ve got nothing to do today, except study as well. You know how to find us if we’re not here.” Jim nodded as he headed out with Penny, “Okay, who wants to go to the park?” McCoy asked mischievously.

It was a long day for Jim and Penny. They first saw a doctor who gave Penny a check-up and her vaccinations. A second doctor gave her a light sedation as he ran the regen unit over her back. The scars faded to nothing. Pictures were taken for the coming trial of the Orion Slavers coming up. Jim wrapped his arms around her shoulders so her face wouldn’t be shown. He also looked at the pictures to see that his face was not shown.

“Slavers fed them well,” one of the nurses commented.

“According to the crew, apparently, they got more for slaves that were healthy,” Jim murmured. The nurse shook her head as she gave the little girl lay in her Uncle’s arms. Jim always made sure that she woke up in familiar arms if she didn’t wake up back in the apartment. Twice it had been Peter’s arms, once Jo’s, most of the time it was Jim’s. Jim kissed her forehead as she came around. She smiled up at him as he asked, “You okay?” She nodded her head.

They went to the doctor’s office, “She’s as healthy as can be expected. The nurse is going to give you the medicine for an anti-viral. She’s managed to pick up the Pertussis. We don’t want her coming down with it with her weakened immune system.” Jim nodded, “She should be fine. I’ll have her test results forwarded to your PADD along with any recommendations I might have. We’ll also be giving you vitamin supplements for her. We just want her to be healthy, Dr. Kirk.”

Jim nodded and they exited the office and picked up the medicines before they headed for one more stop. Dr. Stephanie Kines sat down on the floor with Penny where Jim joined them. “Hi, Penny, I’m Dr. Kines, but you can call me Steph. It’s what my friends call me.” Penny nodded and pressed against her uncle’s side. “I know your brother, he’s my friend like your Uncle Jim is.”

“He is?” Penny asked in a small voice.

“Of course, he talked to me about Deneva. I’m here to listen to you, and help you through everything you’ve been through.” Jim watched as Penny went through some of the toys that lay scattered throughout the office. This was a children’s counselor, and she outfitted her office for those she would see. Penny talked about her family and her life on Deneva and her family.

It took all of the hour given them to get her version of her family out. She even talked about Aunt Kitty. Aunt Kitty was a wonderful Auntie who “grew fat” while she was on Deneva. “Was she fat the entire time?” Dr. Kines asked.

“No, one night she left and a couple of days later came back with a baby,” Penny said. Jim’s head came up. Someone had seen the baby. “She named her Marina.”

Stephanie smiled at the little girl, “Well, unfortunately it’s time to say good-bye. Can I see you next week?”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Penny responded. Jim and Penny finally set off for home. He ordered pizza on his way back so no one would worry about eating.

“We’re back!” Jim announced as he entered the apartment to find a Bones and the other kids had built a fort from the cushions and pillows and blankets strewn across the living room floor.

“Did you bring food?” a gruff voice asked somewhere under all that.

“No, but I ordered pizza,” Jim said as he watched Penny crawl into the fort.

“Pizza!” came the kids’ chorus. A series of grunts could be heard as McCoy exited the fort leaving the kids behind.

“Pizza? Is that the best you could come up with?” Leonard asked.

“You’re complaining about not having to cook?” Jim asked.

“I burn water,” Len replied. “How’d it go?”

“About as well as can be expected. She’s healthy,” Jim said. “I’m going to change out of this,” he said, nodding at his uniform. Jim cleaned up the living room after the kids had gone to bed. “A daughter,” Jim murmured.” McCoy looked at him, “I had a daughter. Penny said that she was named Marina.”

Len looked at Jim and put an arm around Jim’s shoulders, “It’s okay, Jim. Maybe we’ll find her one day.”

Jim was heartened until he opened the next chapter of Starfleet Ethics: “Deneva, Could We Have Done Something Differently?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, please read and review/comment. I would really appreciate it. I have plans for that baby to make an appearance, seriously, I do. Just not for a few years yet.


	20. Deneva

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here it is, the explanation chapter. What happened on Deneva. For those Trekkies out there, this will be a derivation of TOS episode “Operation: Annihilate!” Little changes have been made for the fact that Kirk et al are not out there on the USS Enterprise desperately trying to save Peter’s and the rest of Deneva’s populations lives. Everyone else, insert Kirk, Spock and friends into the roles of Pike and the rest of the crew for pretty much how the episode went. If you’re a fan of Stargate SG-1, yes, there is an episode very similar to this one in the series. This one came first, by about thirty years, maybe forty. Cookies for any Trekkies who can guess where I got the name of the ship. Don’t own any of them.

Professor Simon taught the Ethics class the semester for second year cadets, and she was a kind woman who knew what she was up against in this class. Deneva was a recent and very sore subject. She also knew there were several cadets who had family on Deneva, some of their family died. She also knew that at least one cadet was caring for children left behind by family. This was also the first time in the year since Deneva happened that they would be able to discuss Deneva. The facts were pretty basic.

“Captain Christopher Pike, commanding the USS Hundley, was following a strange series of events. Over the course of several centuries, planets with major civilizations in a certain pattern had gone completely mad and been wiped out,” Simon clicked the viewer. It showed a definite pattern to the planets. “Now, there were several planets with inhabitants that were en route of this pattern, including Deneva. Several weeks before, Starfleet had received a strange communique from Deneva that included a woman laughing hysterically, telling them that they were all mad. The woman was later identified as Aurelan Kirk, wife of Dr. George Samuel Kirk. Known as Sam to his friends and family, Sam and his wife lived on Deneva with their four children and sister-in-law, Ekaterina,” Jim swallowed hard. He felt a hand creep into his on his left and an arm touch his shoulder on his right. He smiled gratefully at Gloria and Bones.

“So, Captain Pike went to Deneva. Upon arrival, they encountered a ship that was heading straight for the local primary. The pilot shouted that he wanted to be free. Just before the ship succumbed to the heat of the sun, he shouted that it was gone, he was finally free. Understandably perplexed, Pike attempted to have his communications officer, Tawney, contact the planet. No one answered. They beamed down to the planet to be attacked by a group of men wielding weapons and warning them away. Their actions and their words at complete odds to each other that Pike and his away team were forced to stun them. They found the Kirk household and found Aurelan and Peter Kirk still alive. Aurelan was screaming, and holding a vent cover in her hands, looking as if she was trying to keep something out. The other inhabitants were either missing or dead.”

Simon paused and looked sympathetically at the back of the room, her eyes meeting with Kirk’s. “I know this is difficult for some of you to hear. Some of you lost family on Deneva,” several cadets refused to meet her eyes. “Peter and Aurelan were transported back to the Hundley’s sick bay while the bodies of the other members of the Kirk family were put in cold storage. Dr. Puri could only determine that something was causing them great pain, and kept both of them under sedation. Aurelan was fighting the sedation, and tried to warn them about what was going on down on the planet, but died before they could understand.”

Simon sighed, “They returned to the surface of the planet and inside one of the buildings found a horde of single-celled organisms. One of them attached themselves to the back of Science Officer Segorn, of Vulcan, and was successfully removed before they beamed up to the Hundley. Dr. Puri discovered that the creature had physically attached itself to the Vulcan’s spinal chord and was controlling the officer. He attempted to remove the creature, only to have Segorn nearly die on him. The extent of the control of the creature was not realized until Segorn tried to take over the ship and beam the creatures on board for a visit to the next planet. He was stunned.

“Through investigation of the creatures they discovered that they had a hive mind, they came from another reality entirely, and they were resistant to phaser fire. After an experiment that left Segorn temporarily blind, they also discovered that they were vulnerable to Ultraviolet light. They treated Peter with just the UV light, and it left him free of the creature. They were subsequently able to use the satellites surrounding the planet to direct the Ultraviolet light so that it destroyed the creatures but did not harm any other inhabitants of the planet.

“These are the bare facts of what happened,” Simon said. “They do not cover the fact that the planet checked in every two weeks, as required since Tarsus IV, in spite of there being evidence that these creatures invaded eight months before. It also doesn’t show that most of the inhabitants’ memories are wiped for most of this time. Yes, Dr. Kirk?”

“My niece and nephew, Penny and Peter, they’re starting to remember bits and pieces of it,” Jim quiet replied.

“Huh, this is recent?” Simon asked. Kirk nodded. “Thank you, Cadet. Also, of the 25,000 inhabitants, about half were either dead or missing. We’ll talk about recent developments regarding the missing in the next class. Peter now lives with his uncle, and other orphans were found homes on Deneva, or placed with relatives elsewhere. The only humans who weren’t affected were the very young. Documents suggest they were removed from their families and placed elsewhere to await a coming of age. Many of these children have never been found.”

Simon paused, “Now, I want all of you to think about this and what we might have been able to do differently. Remember, Archeologists had just begun to discover this pattern when Deneva occurred. There might have been nothing that could have been done to stop it. I want each of you to analyze the data we have, and come to your own conclusions. The next class, we’ll here from Captain Pike about what he saw on Deneva. Class dismissed.”

Jim stood, taking a deep breath while several other cadets stood talking, clumped together. Deneva was such a recent tragedy that everyone knew someone who was touched by it. “Are you okay?” Gloria asked.

“Yes, and no,” Jim whispered. He took a deep hitching breath, “We need to get to our next classes.” Gloria nodded. Jim would deal with this in his own way. He knew where to find her if he needed her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, what do you think? This is the bare bones of the story. Although Starfleet wasn’t alerted to the problem by a random “phone call”. The Enterprise was worried because Jim hadn’t been in contact with Sam for a while, and he wanted to know if he was alright. Tough chapter to write, really.


	21. Illness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Don’t worry, not killing anybody off, but Jim finds himself with a handful of a terrified little girl. Don’t own them.

“Uncle Jim? Uncle Jim!” Jo’s terrified little voice woke him out of a sound sleep. He blinked at the little girl. “It’s Papa! He won’t wake up!”

Jim shot straight out of bed, grabbing the bag that Starfleet insisted all medical students keep with them as he went. He raced into Bones’ room only to find the man talking deliriously, even from the end of the bed Jim could feel heat radiating off the man. “Jo, I need you to go get dressed,” he told the little girl. She nodded and left. He turned to open his bag to find Peter and Penny standing in the doorway. “Peter, Penny, I also need you to get dressed. I’m calling daycare and having them send someone to watch you.” They nodded, looking at their Uncle Leonard.

Penny straightened, “I’ll call Starfleet Emergency Medical Services, too.” Jim nodded, Penny was very mature.

Jim ran a tricorder over McCoy’s body. There was a definite infection going on that Jim couldn’t pinpoint. He picked up his comm and called the emergency number for the Daycare, “Hey, this is Dr. Kirk. Cadet Leonard McCoy, my roommate, has become very ill, and I’ll be going with him and his daughter, Joanna, to the hospital when EMTs arrive. I need someone here to look after Peter and Penny.”

A sleepy voice immediately replied, “Yes, Dr. Kirk, we’ll send the person next on call list.”

“Thank you,” he replied as he heard knocking on the door. One of the kids opened the door as paramedics rushed into the room.

“Dr. Kirk, what’s going on?” Priscilla asked. She was a short, brunette, who was technically a civilian working for Starfleet General.

“Patient presented with a high fever of 104°F and sudden signs of illness. He was complaining of a slight headache but did not give any information about other symptoms and did not appear to be feverish. His daughter, Jo, woke me a few minutes ago worried about her father.” He smiled at the little girl. Jim stepped back and let the EMTs take over. He ran out of the room and got dressed. He emerged from his room to find one of the kids’ daycare teacher, Mrs. Abigail, in the room.

“Go ahead, Dr. Kirk. I’ll watch the kids,” she told him.

Jim took Jo’s hand and followed the ambulance to the hospital. There, he did one of the most difficult things a physician can do. He stayed in the waiting room with Jo for word on Leonard. Dr. Reynolds came out after what seemed like hours, he looked at both of them, “Have either of you been vaccinated for Vegan Choriomeningitis?”

Jim thought about it, long and hard, “I don’t think I have. I don’t know about Jo or the others? Is that what’s going on?”

“If you hadn’t called us when you did, he would never wake up again, Jim. Bring the other kids in and we’ll get you all vaccinated. Just as a precaution,” Reynolds sighed. “This is still very serious, Jim, Jo,” he squatted down so he could look Joanna directly in the eyes. “I’m not going to lie to you, Miss McCoy. Your Daddy is very sick.”

“Is he going to die?” Jo asked.

“I hope not, Joanna. His prognosis is actually very good, now. He’s responding to the medication we’re giving him, but he’s going to be with us for a while. A few weeks at least,” Dr. Reynolds bedside manner was very good. “He’s in isolation right now, so you won’t be able to see him today.”

Jim looked at Jo, “We’ll come by every day and visit him, Jo, okay?” Jo nodded.

They returned to the apartment after receiving their vaccines to have confirmation that the doctors had been by to vaccinate everyone in the building, including Peter and Penny. Jim thanked Abigail before heading over to the wall comm unit. An elderly woman appeared on the screen, “Hey, Hannah, it’s me, Jim. I have some serious news regarding your son, you’ll probably want to come to San Francisco.” Jim picked Hannah up at the Shuttleport later that day.


	22. Concerns Alleviated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone shows up to help. Don’t own them.

Frank was probably the last person Jim expected to show up, but show up he did. Gloria had called him, telling him what happened. Frank packed some clothes, got in his truck, and drove to San Francisco. He simply said, “I’ll take care of the kids. You make sure Leonard, Hannah and Jo are taken care of.”

Jim had sat down and explained to Penny and Peter that Uncle Leonard was very ill, and would not be coming home for a while. That the doctors believed that he would come home, and they should be looking forward to his return in a few weeks. They understood that, and helped Jo as much as they could. Mrs. Ames was apprised of the situation, and care was taken that everyone who might have been exposed to the virus was tested, and given a vaccinations if necessary. Fortunately, most of the student population had already received the vaccine. Vaccines of this type had been mandatory since the mid part of the 20th century.

When Jo and Hannah were finally allowed to see Leonard, they wore full hazard gear. Not the suits, but gowns, masks, gloves, and booties over their shoes. Jim had warned them that the room was dark because McCoy was sensitive to light, and that he might not make sense. It was Jo’s presence that brought the first light of hope. He responded to her voice and her touch. Telling her that he loved her. She responded with tears and love as she and her grandmother reassured him that everything was going to be alright.

Jim visited every day that he was on duty. He had wisely made sure that he wasn’t involved with Bones’ case, as he was a close friend of the family, but the doctors also made sure he was updated on Bones’ condition. Jim was sitting in the Doctor’s lounge, on-call for the night, when M’Benga came in. He smiled at Jim, “Hey, I thought you should know. Leonard’s fever finally broke today.”

Jim stared at him, comprehension finally dawning, “Thank you, Geoff.”

“It’s still going to be touch and go, you know that, but this should mean the rough part is over,” Geoff touched Jim’s shoulder. “Your shift is over, Jim. Go home.”

Jim shook his head before heading out. He stopped for Chinese and ice cream on the way home. May have not been the best combination, but it was a Friday night. They all needed some cheering up. He got home with the food, and was welcomed by hungry kids and adult; Frank and Hannah laughed at Jim’s selection of food. “So, what’s the occasion,” Frank asked.

“Leonard’s fever broke today. It’ll still be some time before he’s out of the hospital, but that usually means he’ll be okay,” Jim laughed as Jo jumped up and kissed his cheek, her favorite ice cream had been snatched up from the super market, Cookies and Cream. “After dinner, Jo,” he admonished. She giggled as she dug out some of her favorite selections.

“Does that mean we’ll be able to see him without the hazard gear,” Hannah asked.

“Soon,” Jim replied. “I’ll let you know when.” He turned eyes on the kids who were whispering conspiratorially amongst themselves. “Okay, what are you three planning?” he asked.

“Uncle Jim? Will you help us build a fort?” Penny asked.

“You know what, Penny. Grandpa Frank makes the best forts ever, and since you’ll be using his bed, meaning the couch, you should ask him,” Jim and Hannah laughed as they immediately pounced on the teddy bear that was Grandpa Frank. Jim turned back to Hannah, “Be prepared to make your way through a maze in the morning.”

“He’s good with kids. You got lucky,” Hannah responded.

“Yeah, he was the best thing Mom did after Dad died. If you’ll excuse me, I need to comm Captain Pike,” Hannah nodded absently as Jim left the room.

“So, he’ll be alright,” Pike asked. Jim nodded. “Good, Sarah was beginning to miss him. So was I, truth be told. When will he be out of the hospital?”

“I don’t know, probably in a couple of weeks. This is still in its serious stages. When he’s moved out of isolation we’ll know he’s within a week of release,” Jim said. Pike nodded.

The next day Jo and Hannah went to visit Leonard. They were no longer required to wear hazard gear. Hannah watched as Jo climbed into bed next to her father and put her little arms around his neck and kissed him. The room was still dark, but he knew who it was. He opened his eyes and looked at his little girl, then, at his mother. “Mom?” he asked.

“Jim called me and I came right up. Frank and I have been taking care of the munchkins while Jim’s been here and at school. You have a lot of schoolwork to catch up on, young man,” Hannah said sternly.

“Ma, please don’t make me laugh,” he said with a coughing sputter. “It hurts when I laugh.”

“Well, you haven’t tried to wander through a living room filled with one of Frank’s forts recently, have you?” Hannah asked dryly. She’d very nearly fallen three times that morning just trying to find the bathroom.

“No,” he replied. “I’m sure I’ll be doing that soon enough, though.”


	23. To Flirt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All those pretty little nurses in the hospital. Don’t own them.

“Dr. Kirk?” asked a red-haired nurse.

“Yes, Nurse Kimora?” Jim asked barely looking up from paperwork.

“Is Cadet McCoy always so…” she blushed.

“Is he flirting?” Jim asked, pulling off his glasses.

“Yes, Doctor,” she mumbled.

“Would you like me to say something to him?” Jim asked.

“Please!” came the chorus. He looked behind Nurse Kimora to find fifteen young, pretty nurses standing in his office. Jim shook his head as he stood up and walked out the door heading for the recovery wing that Leonard had been moved to earlier that week. He knocked on the door before entering. Bones looked up, he looked so much better. He was no longer sensitive to light, and while he still had an infection, he was able to get up and move around, and other things apparently.

Leonard smiled, “Jim! How are you?”

Jim smiled and looked self-consciously at the white uniform he wore, “Hey, Bones.”

“What’s wrong? Is Jo…” McCoy read Jim quickly.

“No, Bones, it’s not Jo. Bones, are you flirting with the nurses?” Jim asked.

McCoy gave a cocky grin, “Yeah, so?”

“I just had a bunch of nurses, sixteen in total, in my office complaining that you’re flirting with them,” Jim said. McCoy sighed. “Bones, you’re incorrigible, but you have a young daughter.”

“Is she here?” Jim rolled his eyes. “Jim, I’m a normal, healthy adult man. Jocelyn’s and my marriage ended over a year ago. I can’t live like a recluse.”

Jim laughed, “I’m not asking you to be a recluse. I’m just asking you to take it easy on the nurses. Geoffrey might start giving you male nurses and married female ones.” McCoy looked crestfallen, “I’m just warning you to be more…” Jim stopped, looking for an appropriate word.

“Circumspect?” McCoy asked.

“THAT’S an excellent word!” Jim said. “Circumspect. You need to set an example for the kids.”

Bones sighed, “I am who I am, Jim. I’m not giving up my flirting.”

Jim shook his head, “You were warned.” Jim was right, McCoy’s next nurse was built like a Klingon, with the disposition of a Vulcan. McCoy couldn’t get out of the hospital fast enough.


	24. The Kobayashi Maru

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, I’ve gone back and established backgrounds and characters that I didn’t fully flesh out before plunging onto this point before, have seen the light of day, especially Hannah and Frank, and McCoy. It’s been a year since the last chapter, and Leonard is about to take that most dreaded test of all, the Kobayashi Maru. Ever since the “Wrath of Khan” (you know, the real Star Trek II), this test has been the holy terror of all tests, one that even a Vulcan (Saavik) could not defeat. Even though one Cadet James T. Kirk did, and yes, he still cheated. Don’t own them.

“COME ON, JIM! YOU CAN DO THIS!” McCoy pleaded with his friend as they exited the Academy headed for the daycare housing Peter and Jo, Penny, who was now ten, was probably back at the dorm. “Hey ladies,” Leonard turned a charming smile on a pair of cadets who rolled their eyes at him.

“What on Earth would compel me to take the Kobayashi Maru with you? I don’t have to take it! I’M not Command Track!” Jim asked.

“Gloria’s going to be there as the navigator, Spock is taking a spot as communications,” McCoy tried to coax.

“And since I’m qualified as a helmsman, because of my computer skills, you want me there,” Jim replied. “Now, why would I agree to be in the same room as Spock? We don’t exactly get along.” He was staring at his PADD, he had another test in advanced Andorian Biology in the morning. His eidetic memory would see him through the test, he just made sure he knew the information. McCoy turned pleading eyes on his best friend, “Oh, alright, I’ll do it.” Jim groaned.

“Great! Let’s get the kids!” Leonard slapped Jim on the arm. Jim shook his head as they traipsed over to get Peter and Jo, it would be another two years before they could join Penny in independent movement toward home. Everyone would probably be on a starship at that point.

The first time he took the test, it was a disaster. For each cadet, it always was for each cadet. Jim was astonished that Leonard would take it a second time with the same results. Jim shakes his head, hoping that it would be the last time, but no, Leonard not only does McCoy announce he’s taking it a third time, he’s got to study. Jim absently smiled at the female cadets as he muttered, “Study my ass.”

“Jo?” Jim calls out when he gets home. Jo peeks around the kitchen corner, “hey, I was working on a hacking program for Captain Pike, and I can’t seem to find it. Have you seen it?”

“No, Uncle Jim,” Jim was puzzled as all three kids denied knowing where it was.

He commed Pike, “I know I said I’d get it to you tonight, but I can’t find it. I don’t have a clue as to where it went.”

“Maybe McCoy picked it up by mistake,” Pike responded.

“Maybe,” Jim sighed, “I’ll see you at the test tomorrow.” Chris shook his head, “No, I have no idea why he would consciously choose to take this test a third time.”

Jim had managed to coral the kids into bed before Leonard comes home, and the fact that he’s just in his boxers makes Jim roll his eyes. “Get kicked out?” Jim asked.

Leonard rolled his eyes, “Well, I was getting pretty far until Uhura returned. Seems she intercepted a message from Klingon space. Something about a fleet being destroyed by a single ship.”

“Wow, that must have been one big ship!” Jim quipped. McCoy nodded, heading off for bed, Jim completely forgot about his hacking program, until the next day. When mid-way through the test the program crashed. “Son-of-a-bitch,” Jim muttered, eyeing the apple on the console in front of him. He had reached for the apple, his only breakfast. He waited, he knew that the program would boot back up in a minute.

Leonard grinned at Jim, telling him to make sure the crew of the Maru is beamed aboard their ship. Then he orders photon torpedoes fired at the Klingon vessels and destroyed them with a single shot at each vessel. Everyone turned to stare at McCoy who grinned self-confidently. As soon as the test was over Jim went straight to the computer room, and pulled up the programming. He was shocked to find the virus he had written was gone, like it had never existed. Jim went home fuming, and barely spoke to Leonard the rest of the day.

The next day a campus meeting was called for all cadets. Jim sat between Gaila and Leonard, they both glared at Leonard with their arms folded over their waists. Both felt betrayed by Leonard’s actions who looked exceedingly smug. “This assembly is called to settle a troubling matter brought to our attention. Cadet James T. Kirk please come forward,” Admiral Barnett called.

Bewildered, Jim stepped forward, “Cadet, it has come to our attention that you wrote a program that affected the Kobayashi Maru.”

“I wrote a program that wasn’t designed for the Kobayashi Maru, Admiral, I had been commissioned to write it by Captain Christopher Pike.”

“What is your specialty in computers?” Barnett asked.

“I have a Doctorate in Computer Science from the University of Moscow. I did not download anything into the computer, sir,” Jim continued.

“You were seen checking the mainframe after the test was completed,” Admiral Komack chimed in.

“The program I had been working on disappeared last night. I went to the mainframe to see if it was actually in there,” Jim replied.

“That’s because another cadet had already beaten you to it,” Komack said. Spock walked down and handed another PADD to the Admiralty board. “Spock was concerned you would remove all traces of the program from the mainframe.”

“Sir, I wasn’t taking the test, why would I do that? I also reported the missing program to Captain Pike last night,” Jim turned to see Pike coming forward to confirm Jim’s story.

“What does Cadet Spock have against you?” Chris asked as Commander Uhura joined Spock.

“My nephew, Peter, offered her flowers from Admiral Johnson’s garden a couple of years ago. I think Spock felt threatened,” Jim said.

The meeting shifted as Barnett tapped his PADD, “Cadet McCoy, come forward please.”

McCoy stepped forward, “Cadet Kirk, you’re cleared of these charges, you may return to your seat.”

“Are you suggesting I cheated, Admiral?” McCoy asked.

“Those are the allegations, Cadet,” came the response.

“I think that the test itself is a cheat, a ‘no-win’ scenario, if you will,” McCoy answered.

“It’s designed to make you face your fears, Cadet,” Uhura answered him. “Something you’ve failed to infer.”

“I don’t believe in no-win situations, **Commander** ,” McCoy responded as an aide rushed in to hand Komack a PADD.

“We’ve received a distress call from Vulcan. This meeting is postponed as all 3rd and 4th year cadets are to report for duty as the fleet is in the Laurentian System. Dismissed.”

Jim, Gloria, Spock and Leonard joined the flow headed for the hangar. Gloria and Jim heard their names called for the USS Enterprise. McCoy was left behind, due to the hearing. Jim slapped him on the arm before starting to head for the nearest shuttle. Gloria stopped him and headed back to McCoy. Jim didn’t see what she did, but he suddenly saw McCoy folded up on the ground. Jim grabbed an arm and threw it over a shoulder as Gloria grabbed the other. Leonard’s left leg was folded up under him as he tried to use his left leg to help them get him onto the shuttle. Jim gave the man in charge some excuse that McCoy was his patient and he couldn’t leave him behind. The flustered gentleman let all three of them on board without much thought.

“What did you do?” Jim asked, tapping out requests on the PADD for Starfleet Daycare to care for the kids while they were away. He also shot off messages to Hannah and Frank, asking them to come in for the kids.

Gloria chuckled as Leonard was curled up on his side, away from his left side. “I hit the sciatic nerve. He’ll be okay after we get him aboard.” Jim chuckled as Leonard groaned.


	25. I Hate You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, I couldn’t resist naming this chapter after one of my favorite lines from Star Trek XI. And poor McCoy and Jim are really going to end up hating Spock among others. Why? Well, history really does repeat itself. Happy Thanksgiving to everybody in the USA. BTW, the Sciatic Nerve is the largest nerve in the human body. It runs from the base of your spinal chord down to your toes, and is quite painful if hit. Don’t own anything.

Gloria and Jim dragged Leonard from the shuttle, literally, on one leg, barely avoiding Spock and Commander Uhura. “Where are we going?” McCoy asked.

“Sickbay, we need to get you changed, and you probably want that injury looked at,” Jim replied.

Leonard looked at Gloria, “I hate you.”

“I love you too, Len,” Gloria responded with a grin. “Couldn’t leave you standing there looking all pathetic, now could I?” McCoy groaned as they deposited him on a biobed in Sickbay. He immediately perked up as he saw all the pretty nurses.

“I’m going to give you a sedative so we can treat the injury without you screaming,” Jim said as he hit Leonard with a hypo.

Leonard was bent over the table his back facing up, “How long is that supposed to take?” he asked before landing face down on the bed. Gloria laughed.

“Unbelievable,” Jim quipped before heading off to change.

When Leonard awoke he was wearing black, and Jim had changed into Medical Blue. Jim was staring off into space as Leonard looked at him. “Jim, what is it?”

“Lightning storm in space, around Vulcan they’ve reported a lightning storm in space,” Jim whispered.

McCoy’s brain soon caught up with him, “On the day of your birth, didn’t the Kelvin report a lightning storm in space?”

“Yeah, along with a really big ship,” Jim replied. “One that destroyed the Kelvin.”

“Let’s find Spock,” McCoy said as they raced out of Sickbay. They found Spock deep in the bowels of the Enterprise.

“McCoy, what are you doing here?” Spock asked.

“Look, Uhura said last night that she intercepted a transmission from Klingon space saying that a fleet had been destroyed by a single ship. Were you with her?” Kirk asked.

“Yes, I was. I helped translate…” Spock was interrupted mid-sentence.

“Was the ship Romulan?”

Spock cocked his head, “Yes, it was.”

McCoy and Kirk looked at each other before racing for the turbolift. Spock followed, clearly curious as to what was going on. All three skidded to a stop in front of Pike who looked confused, “McCoy, what are you doing on board?”

McCoy blurted out a hurried explanation of what was going on while Kirk recommended a full stop. Spock shook his head while Uhura watched the entire exchange shaking her head. Pike turned toward Uhura, “Is this true?”

Spock and Uhura looked at each other as the Commander nodded her head. “We intercepted the message late last night. McCoy’s findings are accurate and quite logical,” Spock replied.

The Enterprise came to a halt as everyone looked at each other, Pike turned toward his communications officer, “Scan for any transmissions in Romulan,” Pike ordered.

“Sir, I’m not sure I can distinguish between Romulan and Vulcan,” the lieutenant replied.

Pike rounded on Spock, “Do you speak Romulan?”

“All three dialects, sir, as well as Vulcan,” Spock replied.

“Obviously,” Pike replied. “Sulu, continue on to Vulcan. But be cautious when we enter orbit.”

Sulu began the countdown as McCoy and Kirk looked at each other. The ship came out of warp to find a ship graveyard as the ships that had preceded them had been blown apart. Nothing could have prepared them for the sight as they avoided large bits of metal only to be fired upon by the enemy ship. When confronted, Nero immediately identified Spock, then invited Pike on board, well, it really wasn’t an invitation. Pike entered the turbolift with Spock, Uhura, Kirk, Sulu and McCoy behind him.

“Okay, McCoy, you’re headed down to stop the drill, you’re not supposed to be here anyway. Spock and Uhura, I need you two to monitor what they’re doing to the planet. Spock, you’re in command, McCoy, you’re first officer, and Uhura, try to keep them from killing each other.”

“Bridge to Dr. Kirk,” came the call.

Jim walked over to a wall unit, “Kirk here.”

“We’ve picked up several escape pods that includes a doctor. He’ll be in Sickbay when you get there.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant,” Jim replied before heading back to Sickbay. He really didn’t belong on the bridge. When he entered he saw several people being helped by nurses and Gloria. Two of them brought a huge smile, Geoffrey M’Benga and Gaila. Gaila wasn’t medical, but she had helped with the kids over the past few years, and Dr. M’Benga, well, he knew his way around the Sickbay and then some.

Kirk found that he was in charge when they discovered the Dr. Puri was dead. It was all that any of them could do to keep up, especially when the Vulcan survivors showed up. He patched them up as best he could, mostly leaving them to M’Benga’s expertise, when he eventually followed McCoy to the Bridge. Leonard disagreed very strongly with Spock’s decision to rejoin the fleet in the Laurentian System, saying it was a waste of time. Silently, Kirk agreed, but when the fight started, he was honestly just defending himself. It wasn’t his fault he was faster than everyone but that damn Vulcan.

But really, he didn’t start that fight. Shouldn’t it have been McCoy who found himself marooned on Delta Vega, not Kirk?


	26. Bewildered

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That will be the state of one very elderly Vulcan who remembers Captain James T. Kirk. Don’t own them.

“Uh, Personal Log, Stardate, whatever, that’s Bones’ province, not mine. I have been marooned on Delta Vega following an altercation between Leonard McCoy and Mr. Spock. I joined in in pure self-defense. I swear that Vulcan has it in for me. If he hadn’t started aiming for me, I probably wouldn’t be here. I only hope that Bones is still on the Enterprise, probably in the Brig. I believe that my situation is in direct violation of Starfleet regulations regarding prisoners on board a starship, and isn’t it convenient that one of the few people that can relieve Mr. Spock of command because of his mental health is now stranded on an ice planet? Huh? Well, uh, what the hell is that? Log, I’ll get back to you later.”

Moments later Kirk found himself sprinting across the ice and snow of Delta Vega, trying to stay one step ahead of the critter who thought he’d make a good meal. Jim was certain he was way too skinny to make a good meal. That critter was tossed aside by another, even bigger creature that decided that Jim Kirk would me him an even better meal. This one had at least six legs, and the mouth, he wasn’t even going there. Even as he lay on his back in the cave being dragged toward said mouth with a long, slimy tongue.

He was so glad to see the man who rescued him, that it never occurred to him that he looked vaguely familiar, “You are James T. Kirk.”

“Uh, do I know you?” Jim asked.

“I have been, and always shall be, your friend,” came the ancient reply.

“I’m sorry, what is your name?” Jim tried again.

“I am Spock.”

“Oh, bullshit,” Jim said.

The ancient Vulcan’s tale unfolded like a Shakespearean tragedy. He tried to save Romulus from a nova, he was unsuccessful, and now, due to a vengeful Romulan, he was here, alongside aforementioned Romulan. “We need to get you back to the Enterprise,” Spock responded.

“Why? Not like I can do anything. I mean, if I were Leonard, I’d just…”

“You are not the Captain of the Enterprise?” Spock asked.

Jim stared back at the old man in shock, “Me? Captain of the Enterprise? I was just promoted to Chief Medical Officer!”

Spock’s gaze drifted down to the wedding band Jim still wore on his left hand, “Are you and Dr. Marcus married?”

“Who’s Dr. Marcus?” Jim asked.

“Much is different in this time and place,” Spock said with a resigned sigh. “You were my captain, and McCoy the CMO. You never married.” Jim flinched. “We still need to get you back to the Enterprise.” Jim studied the Vulcan as they walked across the icy tundra. He didn’t seem mad. In fact, when they reached the outpost, he knew the man at the station as well as Jim did, Pavel Chekov, mad Starfleet Engineer. Spock was obviously shocked, but he took it in stride. Giving Chekov the formula for transwarp beaming. Excitable as ever, Chekov was practically jumping up and down in excitement over the solution to the problem that had gotten Admiral Archer’s dog lost. “You’re coming with us, right?” Kirk asked.

“No, Jim, this is something you have to do yourself. Even if you don’t take command of the Enterprise, you must convince Spock that he is emotionally compromised. Starfleet Regulation 619 should do the trick,” Jim’s mind ran through that regulation as light slowly dawned on his face. “That’s right, Jim, I just watched my entire planet destroyed. I AM emotionally compromised.”

So, all Jim had to do was get on board the Enterprise, pick a fight with a Vulcan, and put McCoy in that chair. Easy, right?


	27. To Stare Down a Vulcan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chekov and Kirk end up back on the Enterprise. And Jim knows he has to provoke a fight, and get Bones out of the Brig. Easy, right? Wait, haven’t I asked that before? Never mind. Don’t own them.

Jim panicked. Chekov was stuck in the engine coolant and Jim had seconds to get him out, before he drowned preferably. Jim started running, looking for some sort of release valve, and panicked even more when he saw the young Russian heading for blades. He found the computer console and got Chekov out seconds before he met his demise.

“O mayor!” he announced. “My ears are buzzing, I think I vill be alright.”

“Come on, that’s bound to have been noticed by Scotty. I want to be somewhere obvious when Security catches up with us,” Jim muttered. Chekov grinned nervously back. Jim couldn’t help but grin as Chekov stared in wonder at the engine room. The kid couldn’t help but run his hands proprietarily over the machines, he even stopped to stare in the direction of the warp core. Jim didn’t mind, that gave security more time to come get them.

Jim really wasn’t surprised to run into Cupcake and his goons. He didn’t put up much of a fight. He leaned toward Chekov, “Whatever happens, don’t interfere.” Chekov looked at him, startled, before he nodded. Jim took a deep breath before the turbolift doors opened. He had no idea how he was going to do this, he just had to survive it, he hoped.

It was easier than he thought it would be. Jim, painfully, evoked Spock’s mother, Amanda. It caused a painful tightening in his chest. His own relationship with his mother was so, non-existent. Even after all the strides they had made, his relationship with Winona could only be described as strained. “YOU NEVER LOVED HER!”

Spock attacked, throwing Jim over the command chair before picking him up and throwing him over one of the consoles, strangling him. Jim started to black out, maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. He never expected to hear a single voice to show displeasure with one word, “Spock!”

Spock stopped, Jim could see the consternation in Spock’s eyes as sanity returned, and he let go of Kirk. “Doctor, please record in the ship’s log: I’m stepping down from my position as Captain. I am…emotionally compromised. Please note the time in the ship’s log.”

Jim watched as Spock exited the Bridge as Jim regained his breath. “Where’s McCoy?” he asked.

Uhura responded, “In the brig.”

Jim walked over to the center chair and looked at it. “Get him out, Pike made him first officer before he left.” Scotty and Sulu nodded Cupcake left.

“I hope you know what you’re doing,” Uhura said.

“Me? I don’t have a clue, but that’s why I’m getting Bones back here,” he turned to see Chekov in Engineering red. Uhura huffed as the turbolift doors opened and Leonard McCoy exited in his black shirt and pants. He smiled as he saw Jim. “Hey, Bones, glad to see you. Hope your stay in the brig was uneventful.”

“Well, there are 526 ceiling tiles in the brig I stayed in, but other than that…” he reached out and hugged Jim, “Good to see you, Doc!”

“Oh, remember Chekov? I ran into him on Delta Vega. Thought he’d be good as our new Chief Engineer, considering we lost our last one.”

McCoy smiled, slapping Chekov on the arm, “Good to see you. Where are you going, Jim?”

“Sickbay. I really need M’Benga to check me out. I got into two fights with a Vulcan, and two big monsters,” Jim stopped as a wave of dizziness overtook him. McCoy looked at him, concerned. “It’s okay. I’ll make it.” Uhura nodded at Leonard as she followed him into the lift.

“Mr. Scott, set a course for Earth,” Leonard proclaimed, sitting gingerly in the chair. He ran his own hands over the consoles. “Okay, let’s make plans.”

Jim reached Sickbay with Uhura at his side, “Hey, go back to the bridge. They’re going to need your experience since Captain Pike isn’t here.”

“Are you sure?” Uhura asked. Jim opened his mouth to speak and collapsed. “Dr. M’Benga! Dr. M’Benga! Dr. Kirk needs help, now!”

The African doctor high-tailed it into entrance of Sickbay pulling out a tricorder, “His blood sugar is low. Broken ribs, some internal bleeding, and severe bruising of his neck and trachea. Nurse Chapel, let’s prep him for emergency surgery. He was on his way down here to be checked out?” he asked Uhura. She nodded, “He’s in good hands, Commander.” She watched as M’Benga and an orderly manhandled Kirk onto a gurney before starting to prep him for surgery.

Uhura straightened her shoulders and headed back to the bridge. She smiled as she entered the bridge. McCoy turned to her while Scotty was saying something about Titan. “How is he?” Leonard asked.

“He’s going to be fine. M’Benga had some stuff to do to him, and had to sedate him,” Uhura responded. McCoy had a lot on his mind to do, and worrying about Kirk was not something he needed at the moment.

McCoy gave her a half-smile before returning his attention to Scotty, and Spock who entered the bridge. She would keep an eye out for Dr. Kirk. They needed to focus on Nero.


	28. Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spock and McCoy take the battle to the Narada. Don’t own them.

The shouting started almost immediately after they beamed on board the ship. McCoy sighed, “This is NOT the cargo bay, Chekov.”

“I do not think there is much logic to this ship, Captain,” Spock replied. Leonard shot him a “ya think” look as they took off for the bowels of the ship. They shot Romulans as they went, McCoy told Spock to keep going, he had his back. He watched as Spock pressed his fingers to the man’s temple.

“Find the red matter?” McCoy asked.

“And Captain Pike,” Spock said grimly as they ran deeper into the ship. There, they encountered the most sophisticated ship either had ever seen. They approached it cautiously to find the red matter in the ship. “Captain, this technology is more advanced than anything I’ve ever seen. I’m not sure…”

“Voice print analysis recognized, welcome back Ambassador Spock,” the computer’s voice announced.

McCoy and Spock looked at each other. “That’s weird,” McCoy muttered.

“Seems Dr. Kirk wasn’t full forthcoming about his adventures on Delta Vega,” Spock said.

“Yeah, we may need to talk to him about that,” McCoy muttered. “Can you fly this?”

“Something tells me I already have. Leonard, in case I don’t make it back, tell Uhura that I…” Spock was quickly cut off.

“You’ll make it Spock, something tells me we all will,” McCoy took off out the hatch and turned to watch the ship exit the hangar. He shook his head in wonder at the technology that allowed it to do that without clearing out the hangar.

So, trying to arrest Nero was probably not the brightest idea he had. When confronted by the much larger man, he heard the oddest words. “I know your face from history. You were a great surgeon and doctor. I’m surprised Kirk isn’t here, he was considered a great man as well. Doesn’t matter, I’ll rid you and your captain of your lives, just as I did his father.”

“Captain Nero, the red matter ship has been stolen,” a voice sounded.

“SPOCK!!!” the rage barely contained in the Romulan could be heard as he raced for his machines.

McCoy stood as another Romulan approached him. McCoy didn’t like flying, and he wasn’t a great jumper, but he took a running a leap for another platform and really did almost make it. Unfortunately, he found himself sliding backward and then hanging on by his fingernails. He really wasn’t surprised when the Romulan not only managed the leap, but picked him up by the throat.

“You humans are weak,” he sneered as McCoy tried to speak. “You can’t even speak.” He adjusted his grip, “What did you say?”

“I’ve got your gun,” McCoy repeated as he shot the Romulan. McCoy landed on the platform as the Romulan toppled forward off the platform. McCoy lurched to his feet and hurried in the general direction Spock had indicated he could find Pike. He found him strapped to the table.

“What are you doing here?” Pike slurred.

“Following orders to come get you,” Leonard said as Pike pulled his gun from McCoy’s holster and shot more Romulans. McCoy finished unstrapping him and helped him up. “Enterprise, this would be a good time to get us out of here!” he called into his communicator. He felt the tug of the transporter as they both disappeared. He found himself on the transporter pad looking at Chekov and suddenly aware that Spock was standing beside him.

M’Benga quickly entered the transporter room with Nurse Chapel. Leonard looked confused that Jim wasn’t there, but ran for the bridge, he had a job to do. A job made much easier by the fact that Nero didn’t feel too cooperative. Unfortunately, the black hole that resulted caused Chekov to eject the warp core to get out of the gravity well. In a few minutes, it took Scotty to realize that it would take three weeks to get to back to Earth.

Leonard sighed, he didn’t want to be away from Jo that long. He looked up at his crew, “Spock you have the conn. I’m going down to check up on Jim.” He couldn’t help but feel something wasn’t right. Jim should have been in that transporter room getting Pike. Uhura joined him as they exited the bridge. They said nothing as the turbolift descended to Sickbay.

They entered to see Gaila helping with the injured. She turned and smiled at them, “Leonard, how are  you?”

“I’m alright, where’s Jim?” he asked.

“You didn’t tell him?” Gaila asked Uhura.

Uhura shook her head, “He needed to stay focused. How is he?”

McCoy looked between the two women, “What’s going on? Where’s Jim?”

Gaila sighed as she turned and lead them through Sickbay. McCoy and Uhura both flinched as they saw so many blanket covered bodies. McCoy was suddenly scared that Jim would be among them. Jim lay unconscious on a biobed. Spock’s fingerprints clearly visible on his neck. “He collapsed when he got here earlier. Geoff took him into surgery immediately. It was touch and go, but they believe he’s going to be fine. Geoff is more concerned about Captain Pike.”

McCoy nodded as he climbed up onto a biobed himself. He knew he needed to be checked out. Afterwards, all he wanted was to call the kids and find a bed. He was so tired. Maybe, he should eat too…


	29. Going Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, back to nice and normal AU. Am I killing Pike off? I don’t know. At this point the answer is probably. As much as I love that character, McCoy needs that push. And I’m not killing off Jo or Jim to give him that push. But, that’s in the future. For now, a certain Starfleet Admiral has arrived with some surprises. Don’t own them.

Jim heard the distinct sound of someone giggling. That was strange, was he no longer on the Enterprise? He swam toward consciousness as he heard McCoy’s voice and another, high pitched voice respond. Then he distinctly heard Frank’s baritone join in. Were they already back on Earth? Jim opened his eyes to find Leonard, Hannah, Frank, Penny, Peter and Jo all staring at him, with Geoff hovering behind them. “Uh, hi everybody,” he said as he took in his surroundings. He was still on the Enterprise.

Frank ran his hand through Jim’s hair fondly, “Hey, kid, welcome back. Ya did good.”

Jim smiled as Penny and Peter climbed up in bed with him and gave him hugs. “What happened?” Jim asked. He glanced around to discover Captain Pike in a nearby bed unconscious. He didn’t look good.

“Well,” Leonard replied, “to make a long story short. Spock and I went on board the Narada, beat up some Romulans, took out the ship which unfortunately involved the creation of a black hole, ejected the warp core to escape the gravity well of said black hole, and it’ll be about three weeks before we get back home. So, Admiral Archer came with some ships to take the Vulcans off our hands and the dead and Captain Pike, since he’s technically still Captain, and delivered us three monsters!”

“Daddy!” Jo protested as Frank, Hannah, and Archer all burst out laughing.

Jim shook his head as he looked at M’Benga, “How am I doing?”

“You were out for three days, Jim, but most of the damage has been repaired. You still have some healing to do, and as long as you don’t pick a fight with another Vulcan, you should be alright,” M’Benga replied.

Jim sighed, “Spock. How is he doing?”

“Better than you are,” Archer replied. “Jim, I’ve got a bone to pick with you. Why Chekov?”

“Not my fault that he was on Delta Vega where I got marooned, Admiral. Oh, you’ll probably want to have someone stop by and pick up the remaining station personnel. There’s somebody there who you’ll very much want to meet.” Archer gave him a strange look as he turned toward a console to give another ship those orders.

M’Benga stepped forward and started scanning Jim who closed his eyes. He was still tired and had two very warm bodies pressed up against him. “Jim, I’ll let you go in a couple of days. Take it easy and report back here every day, not that that will be hard given your job description.”

Frank announced that he was taking the kids to the rec room to feed them too much ice cream and the crowd slowly dissipated as Leonard looked at Jim. “Who is it? Who did you meet on Delta Vega?”

Jim snorted softly, looking around before answering, “I met Spock. A very elderly version of our Vulcan crewmate. He was shocked that I wasn’t Captain.”

Leonard shook his head, “Yeah, well, Nero was surprised to see me instead of you. Do you suppose that we were very different in his universe?”

“He looked at my wedding band and asked if I’d married Dr. Marcus. I’ve never met a Dr. Marcus.”

Leonard snorted, “The only Dr. Marcus I’ve ever heard of is the daughter of Admiral Marcus, Dr. Carol Marcus.”

“Then the answer is definitely no. I’m not sure I’d want him for a father-in-law,” Jim said with a grunt. “Where are you and the kids staying?”

“There’s a cadet who’s a master of efficiency. Her name is Janice Rand and she’s the captain’s yeoman. She found the family quarters that were to be yours and mine, turns out, and gave them to me. Frank and Mom are staying next door in other family quarters. Mom’s taken a shine to your stepfather. Can you imagine us related to each other?”

Jim laughed, “She’d spoil Penny and Peter rotten.”

It was a long and slow trip home. Jim getting out of Sickbay was the highlight of the trip as far as McCoy was concerned. McCoy spent Alpha shift on the Bridge while Jim spent it in Sickbay with two very willing babysitters on board. At one point the toxins in Pike’s system built up so high that Jim had to put him on dialysis. “I’m sorry, Captain,” he apologized to Chris. “This is still the fastest way I know to do this,” Pike grimaced at him, not saying a word.

Archer approached him the day before the made planetfall, “How’s he doing?”

Jim looked up, “As well as can be expected, Admiral. He’ll walk again, just not without help. There’s so much damage…maybe neurosurgeons on Earth will be able to help him.”

Archer sighed as he sat down across from Kirk, “He was supposed to command this starship. What are we going to do now?”

“Just don’t give it to me,” Jim replied.


	30. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Discovery asked what was my favorite Earth shot from space. Mine actually comes from Star Trek: the Next Generation. At the end of the episode “The Best of Both Worlds Part II”. Picard is standing in his ready room looking out the window at Earth. The shot is outside in space looking at Picard, and you can see the reflection of Earth in the window. It’s a marvelous piece of special effects that I haven’t seen repeated since. Too subtle, I guess. Enterprise returns home, and everything returns to normal, relatively speaking of course. Don’t own them.

It was Beta Shift. Everyone who wasn’t on duty occupied places with windows looking out into space. Jim, Leonard, Frank, Hannah, Penny, Peter, and Jo all found places in the Observation Lounge. Today was the day, they were returning home. Everyone cheered as Mars came into view on their passage to the inner solar system. The red planet meant they were almost home.

“This never gets old,” Archer breathed behind them as the small, blue and white marble of a world finally resolved itself nearby.

“Agreed,” came the reply. Jim chuckled as he realized the comment came from Spock’s father, Sarek. “Earth is a remarkably beautiful world,” he clarified. “And for now, it’s home.”

Everyone nodded in agreement as they turned back to the view. It didn’t take long before the Enterprise entered a parking orbit and the all clear was sounded. “All personnel to stations to await the arrival of Starfleet personnel,” the announcement broadcast itself over the ship.

“What am I, mincemeat?” McCoy asked.

“I’d better get to Sickbay. Brief the incoming doctors on Pike,” Jim said standing up.

“Da,” Chekov said morosely, “and I have to explain why I ejected the warp core.” Even Archer chuckled at this. Frank and Hannah corralled the kids while everyone else left for their duty stations. Later, they met up in the shuttle where Chekov was trying to get another Engineer to understand why he did it. Kirk excused himself and continued the explanation with not so simple physics. The engineer stared at the cadet, shook his head in baffled bemusement, and left.

Jim returned to his seat and Chekov sat next to him with a big grin on his face. “That vas brilliant Doctor! I did not know you vere a physicist.”

“I have a Doctorate in Theoretical Physics from the University of Moscow,” Kirk told the young engineer. This provoked what McCoy supposed was a fierce debate. He wasn’t sure, the entire thing was in Russian, but the body language suggested it was a contentious debate.

“So, why the long face?” Sulu asked, in Japanese.

McCoy automatically responded, “I’m going from Captaining my own starship back to a cadet. That’s a hard fall.”

Hannah turned and looked at her son as he spoke with his Japanese-American friend. “Leonard, when did you learn Japanese?”

McCoy looked embarrassed, “In high school, Mom. I took French and Japanese.”

“When did you do that?” she asked.

“After I tested out of Calculus, Mom,” Leonard said. It suddenly occurred to Sulu that McCoy didn’t want to be thought of as a nerd or a geek. “Look, the only reason I passed Beginning Engineering was because Jim has a Master’s Degree in Engineering!”

“Oh, no, leave me out of this!” Jim exclaimed. “Half the time I was trying to struggle through Andorian physiology. I still don’t understand why their skin pigmentation is a bright blue. And then there were the pilot’s licensing programs you kept dragging me to…”

Archer shook his head as the debate raged the entire trip planetside. It was silenced as the hatch to the shuttle opened up and fresh, planet made air wafted up inside the cabin. Jim took a deep breath before unbuckling himself and then helping Frank, Penny, and Peter with theirs. First thing Jim and Leonard did when they got back to their dorm was take long hot showers. There were no water restrictions on-planet unlike on a starship.

The next day they saw Hannah and Frank off to their respective homes, but it didn’t hit until Monday what had really happened. In classes that held thirty to forty students, there were sometimes five, often one or two. Several instructors had been killed over Vulcan and several juniors and seniors were drafted into those positions: McCoy, Kirk, and Chekov among them. This lasted until the main fleet finally returned from the Laurentian System and there were more people to take over those posts.

At the end of the year Starfleet found itself graduating its Junior and Senior classes as Jim, Leonard and the rest sighed in relief. The Academy was called to witness everyone’s posting. “Dr. James Tiberius Kirk,” Jim heard. He walked up to Admiral Komack slightly apprehensively, “You and your family are returning to the USS Enterprise, and you will be retaining the position of Chief Medical Officer.” Jim grinned, it was what he wanted. He turned to see Captain, now Admiral Pike sitting in a wheelchair nearby. He grinned at him as Chris grinned back.

“Leonard Horatio McCoy,” Komack called last. McCoy stood and walked up, “For service above and beyond the call of duty, the Enterprise is yours. Congratulation, Captain.” McCoy shook the Admiral’s hand in obvious shock. This was not what he was expecting.

Leonard turned to Admiral Pike, “I relieve you sir.”

“I am relieved,” Pike replied, shaking his hand. There was a certain amount of sadness in the older man’s eyes.

Later, Kirk wore his new Medical shirt with Lieutenant Commander’s stripes on them and corralling two kids onto a transporter pad as he was confronted by a certain Vulcan. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“You two have met, huh? Well, he asked me not to,” Jim replied. “Look, we didn’t exactly get off on the right foot. He told me that we’re supposed to be friends, and I’m willing to do that. I’m not interested in Uhura. Right now, I’m not interested in anybody.”

“You are married,” Spock replied.

“No, Spock, I am widowed. Kitty was not one of Deneva’s survivors. I just haven’t met anyone I’d even consider dating right now,” he never even saw the look a pretty young nurse was giving him. Spock did.

“You never know, Doctor, you may be surprised,” Spock responded before stepping onto the pad. Kirk gave him a strange look before stepping onto the pad. Soon after the ship was on its way, Jim took Peter and Penny to where they’d attend school. The area was bright and cheerful, reflecting its purpose. The teacher was married to one of the Engineers and was Starfleet herself. Jim was cheered himself, maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.

 


	31. Love?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, there’s about a year between McCoy becoming Captain and Nibiru (yes, I know, originally it was Kirk, but you know what I mean!). So, we’re going to give Jim a love interest, and we’re redeeming poor Chekov, much to the kids delight. Don’t own them.

It was 0300 and McCoy’s door kept ringing. He got out of bed and tripped over one of Jo’s toys on his way out of his room, across the living space, and to the door. Jo’s door remained blissfully closed. He opened the door to find Chekov holding a dog. “Yes, Chekov, when did you get a dog?”

“This is not just any dog, Captain! This is Porthos!” his engineer gleefully announced.

“Porthos?” McCoy’s mind wasn’t working very well. “Admiral Archer’s dog?” it finally connected.

“Da! Da! I awoke vith his nose in my ear!” Chekov was so excited that McCoy didn’t have the heart to scold him as he heard a high-pitched squeal behind him announcing that Jo had, indeed, awakened.

McCoy firmly took the pooch in his arms before going over to the comm unit to contact the Admiral. Archer, to say the least, was amazed, “How did you find him?”

“Apparently, he appeared out of nowhere, Admiral. I…” he looked down to find Jo hugging the pup, “Clearly my daughter has fallen in love with your dog, Admiral. We should be in orbit above Earth in two weeks if you can wait that long.”

Archer looked at the dog licking the little girl’s face, “Okay, but don’t be surprised if I hitch a ride out to meet you.” Archer gave Chekov a long look before signing off.

“I’ll keep Porthos here, Chekov, we don’t need him having another accident before Archer picks him up,” McCoy told the man. Next thing both men knew, the pooch was being dragged off McCoy’s lap and across the room and into Jo’s room. The dog was half as big as the girl. Chekov nodded and toddled off back to his own bed.

The next morning he found himself swamped with kids as Penny and Peter came over to play with Porthos. McCoy found himself even more popular than usual as he went out for a stroll with the dog. A week and a half into this period Admiral Archer showed up and there was a heartfelt reunion between master and dog. The admiral would be on board for the next week and a half, but he was able to see how well McCoy was able to run the ship. To his shock, Kirk was actually talking to a woman outside of Sickbay, who wasn’t Gloria anyway.

“Who’s that?” Archer asked, pointing to the blonde sitting at the same table as Kirk.

“Christine Chapel,” McCoy answered. “Penny and Peter like her.” There appeared to be an animated conversation between the two. Archer noticed something significant. Kirk no longer wore his wedding band. “That happened a month ago. I don’t think he’s let go, but I think his grieving is coming to a softer, more gentle point.”

“Bridge to Captain McCoy,” came the call.

McCoy pulled out his communicator, “McCoy here, what’s up, Commander Uhura?”

“We’ve been called by Admiral Marcus to a Memorial Service on Tarsus IV,” Uhura responded.

McCoy looked up and saw not only Jim, but Gloria, Tom, and another survivor and recent addition to the Enterprise, Kevin Riley. “Is this an order, Uhura?”

He heard her sigh, “Yes. They’ve built a Memorial to the dead and the survivors of the massacre and they understand that we have several survivors on board.”

McCoy looked apologetically at Archer, “Alright, set course for Tarsus IV, and set a meeting with the survivors for later today. They don’t need to be surprised.”


	32. Tarsus Revisited

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I know I’ve done Tarsus before, but I’ve never brought them back to the planet before. Emotions will be stirred. Memories will be resurrected, and tears will be shed. Don’t own them.

“Tarsus IV,” Gloria said, her hands clenching into fists. “We’re being ordered to Tarsus IV.”

“Yes,” McCoy answered. “There’s a Memorial being erected…”

“I don’t give a damn about the memorial,” Jim replied. “This is another way to make people feel better who could have done something to prevent what happened.”

“Jim…” Archer replied.

“You can’t make any of us attend this ceremony, Admiral. Some of us can identify Kodos so how safe are we? I have children I need to take care of.”

“Lenore Karidian is going to be there,” Archer said quietly. Everyone’s heads snapped up at his statement. “She is also a member of the Tarsus 9.”

“Might as well tell us JT will be there,” Tom muttered. Jim looked at him and nodded.

“Well, since you’re the only ones who know who JT is and none of you are talking,” Archer said in frustration. “We can’t make you come, that’s true. Please, all I can do is ask you. Come down. The shuttle leaves at 0800 tomorrow.”

Leonard stood in the shuttle bay, nervously fiddling with his cover. Archer looked at him with a smile, “Relax, Captain, they’ll be here.”

“You’re certain, Admiral, I know most of these people, lived with one of them for three years. Jim and Gloria alone…” Leonard’s words trailed off as first Gloria, then Jim, Tom, and Gloria appeared at the shuttle in full dress uniform. Leonard smiled in relief, “Thank you, all of you.”

“Let’s get this over with,” Jim muttered before planting himself in a seat. They all followed his lead, sitting in a group together that excluded Archer and McCoy. It was deliberate. They didn’t want to be doing this. Archer could read this from their stiff postures and silence. When they touched down and the hatch opened McCoy and Archer strode out placing their hats on their heads. Jim and the others clumped together, seeming to gather courage from each other. It was Kevin who finally took the first steps back onto the planet they’d grown to hate. Jim was the last off the shuttle. This surprised McCoy. Jim was not usually following others.

They stopped before the ruined city walls. Vulcan scientists had cleaned the land of the fungus that caused the devastating famine, and new colonists were forging new ties to the planet’s lands. Archer and McCoy stayed just within the ruined the city gates. Slowly they trickled through the gates and lead the way to the city center. Even after all the years that had passed, they still knew the way to the square where they had all been sentenced to death. They stopped short, looking at the stone monolith. The monolith was inscribed with the names of those who had died. In front of the monolith was a stage and hundreds of chairs. McCoy watched as they slowly approached the Memorial, running their hands over the names.

Kev broke into tears as he found the names of his families. Gloria leaned against the names of her parents. Tom found his brothers and sisters, and Jim found his Aunt, Uncle, and cousins. At the bottom, they found the names of the kids that had died in the months following the massacre. The final name “JT” made them stare. “I suppose it’s time for the truth to come out,” Jim murmured.

“Are you sure?” Tom asked.

“Yes, Tom, this is one name that doesn’t belong here,” he turned to find Spock behind them nodding in agreement. The only one not of the Tarsus 9 who knew the truth. They took their seats as the ceremony started. The President of the United Federation of Planets stood up and spoke first. She droned on as most people started to doze.

“I’d like to introduce Lenore Karidian, daughter of Governor Kodos,” she finished.

The statuesque blonde approached the podium, “My father did many things, and not all of them were bad. He will always be remembered for being the villain of Tarsus IV. Rightly so, my mother and I were among those condemned to death. I survived, she did not. People ask me if my father is still alive. I hope not, he deserves to rot in hell for what he did. I light this candle in memory of my Mother and everyone else who died on Tarsus IV. I’d like to call my fellow survivors to come up and light a candle in memory of those they lost.”

One by one they came up, some spoke, others cried, all touched where the names of their families rested. Finally, Jim approached the podium and took a deep breath. “It seems strange, standing here. I never thought I’d return. There is one name that does not belong on that Memorial. You see, my name is James Tiberius Kirk, here, I was known as JT. I haven’t gone by that name in many years. I lost my aunt, uncle, and cousins to Kodos’ massacre. I lost my wife, brother, and sister-in-law to alien parasites on Deneva, but I am still here. I survive. We all survive. We symbolize the very fact that Kodos will never win. It doesn’t matter if he is alive or not. We live, we won,” Jim lit another candle and touched his hand to his family and JT’s names. “We can forgive, but we will never forget.”

Archer, McCoy, Spock and others of the Enterprise’s command crew watched as Jim was surrounded by other survivors. He was touched, hugged, and cried upon. No one could quite understand what this was all about unless they had been there. This would finally bring closure and healing to so many. McCoy could only imagine.


	33. Awkward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Archer is now faced with a PR nightmare. The CMO of the Starfleet’s Flagship is revealed to be JT, and now he has to deal with it before they get back to Earth and Admiral Marcus. Don’t own them.

There were exactly two reporters covering the Tarsus IV memorial, one a local reporter, and the other a bored reporter from Earth who hadn’t been expecting anything interesting to be happening among the survivors. Sure, four of the survivors were members of the Tarsus 9, but at that point it was old news. When the blonde doctor announced he was JT, he sat straight up in his chair. He had the scoop of the decade that would make his career.

Admiral Archer groaned. He had not been prepared for this. No one could possibly have prepared him for this and he could see the reporters in the audience straightening up and their eyes gleaming. Jim finished his speech and stepped away from the podium as both reporters surged toward him. The one from Earth, James Dawson, was a professional, and immediately pounced, “You can’t keep us from talking to him, Admiral.”

“Let me talk to Dr. Kirk, gentlemen,” Archer answered. They watched as Archer walked over to Kirk and talked to him. Jim looked over the two reporters and nodded his head.

Jim walked over to the reporters, “What do you want to know, Gentlemen?” He spent the next hour going over his life story. He even showed them the scar across his shoulder. “Kodos whipped me, trying to break me, make me one of his child soldiers. I resisted, I wouldn’t help a man that sentenced me to death.”

They were back in the shuttle when Kirk sighed, “Well, I just made somebody’s career.” He looked around, “Here’s to hoping Kodos is dead.” Gloria patted Jim’s hand. The shuttle docked and Leonard followed Jim back to the quarters he shared with his niece and nephew.

“Jim? Why didn’t you tell me? Why did you tell Spock?”

“I didn’t tell Spock, he put two and two together and came up with my identity. James Tiberius=JT,” Jim sighed as he pulled up the news vids.

“In late breaking news: The identity of the hero of Tarsus IV was revealed today at the Tarsus IV Memorial. Lieutenant Commander James Tiberius Kirk, Chief Medical Officer of the USS Enterprise, revealed himself to be that boy from many years ago,” UNN reported.

“Is it true? Can it possibly be that this man is JT? Experts weigh in,” another station proclaimed.

One had an interview with Lenore Karidian, “Yes, Dr. Kirk is JT. He saved my life and many, many more on Tarsus IV.” Lenore kept her faith smooth and serene. An older gentleman put his arm around her and guided her away from the reporters.

“Who was that older man?” Leonard asked.

Jim looked at the screen briefly, “Anton Karidian, he took Lenore in after she left the hospital and he and his wife adopted her. He’s the reason she and actress.” Three days later the Enterprise entered Earth’s orbit. Archer beamed down with Kirk in tow. Two days later Leonard found him in the Observation Lounge, Nurse Chapel tucked up against him. They were saying nothing, just staring out into the stars. They looked very comfortable together. Leonard felt a surge of jealousy that his friend could find someone on board the Enterprise. Jim looked up, “Hey, Bones.”

“How did _I_ get that nickname? You’re the surgeon,” Leonard grumbled.

“You shouldn’t have made that comment about Jocelyn leaving you your bones, Bones,” Jim laughed. “What’s up?”

“We’re heading back into the black, Jim. They’re having a memorial on Deneva next week, and no, they’re not sending us, they’re afraid of another revelation from you,” Leonard couldn’t hold back the chuckle.

“Well, it’s not like I was there. It’s also well known that I did have family there,” he pressed a kiss onto Chapel’s forehead. Kids were still in class, and Jim didn’t have another shift for sixteen hours. It was a quiet moment that Leonard could understand him needing. “Archer has ordered me to stay on board the Enterprise while in orbit above Earth. He also had my combat training reevaluated. Seems Spock’s reports on my speed wasn’t really paid attention to before now.”

“How’s the Gorn?” Leonard asked with a grin. It had taken an hour for all the cuts and scrapes to heal under the regenerator after that birth.

“She’ll live, and so will her little ones. They’re surprisingly parental. Can’t judge another species by our own reptiles!”


	34. Roger Korby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything is about to start to go to hell in a hand basket. It starts with the quest for a fiancée. Don’t own them.

“I’m sorry, Jim, I have to try. I have to tell him good-bye if it really is him,” Christine laid a gentle hand on his face.

Jim sighed, “I understand, Chris, it’s not like you ever lied to me about this. But, I thought you said he was dead.”

“Roger was presumed dead, his body was never found after the lab accident. I love you, Jim, and the kids. I’ll come back to you, I promise. This transfer is temporary. Besides, how much trouble can you possibly get into on a primitive planet like Nibiru?”

“You don’t know Bones very well,” Jim said with a laugh. “If anyone can find a way of getting into trouble, it’s him. He told me he was jealous of us. That I had found someone else, and he kept getting ignored.”

Chris sighed, “If he’d stop chasing everything in a female form, maybe he’d find someone.” She leaned in and kissed him, “I love you, Jim. Maybe, after I get back, we can convince Captain McCoy to let us go looking for your daughter.” Jim sighed and held her closely. He was going to miss her. McCoy watched as Kirk escorted Chris to the shuttle and watched her go.

Bones laid a hand on Jim’s shoulder, “Come on Jim. Spock wants to talk to us about Nibiru.”

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jim rolled his eyes, it was a good thing he could swim, otherwise he would have been concerned about the ocean. Scotty wasn’t happy, and Spock, even rescued, was not happy. Uhura shook her head and appeared to be royally pissed at Spock.

“That’s it!” Jim said in exasperation. “The kids are visiting Grandpa Frank when we get back!”

“Jim, that’s unnecessary,” Bones said.

“I need a peace of mind, here, Bones. We’ll be on Earth for a couple of weeks anyway, Frank will be happy with it. He’s expecting Peter and Penny.” In fact, both Frank and Hannah were waiting for the kids when they got back to Earth. They’d planned the next two weeks out including a trip to Zurich, Switzerland, where they’d eventually meet up with Jim and Leonard. The problem was that the apartments they now occupied was very lonely. Which probably explained why Bones ended up with two Caitians two days into their stay home, waiting for orders.

Jim was getting ready to the clinic for some updated training when he heard his doorbell ring. He opened the door to find Leonard standing there, “That little bitch, she turned me in.”

Jim looked at him confused, “Commander Uhura?”

“Who else, I should never have made her my First Officer,” Jim raised an eyebrow. “She gave a concise report of what happened of what happened on Nibiru, and submitted it to Starfleet.”

“And you didn’t?” Jim asked.

“No, the Enterprise has been taken away from me, and I’ve been sent back to the Academy,” Jim shook his head. “Admiral Marcus doesn’t trust me.”

Jim sighed, “Look, Bones, you’re welcome to stay here. I’ve got to get to the clinic. We’ll talk tonight.”

When he returned, Bones was gone. Jim wasn’t surprised. When Admiral Pike contacted him later that night, Jim sent him a list of Bones’ favorite bars in San Francisco. He had no doubt that was where he’d be found. Later, he received an emergency alert, all medical personnel were to report to the Daystrom Institute.

Jim reached in time to find McCoy curled up in a corner of the lobby, “Admiral Pike is dead.”

“Are you alright?” Jim asked.

Bones brushed off the hand, “Go upstairs. There are people who actually need your help.” Jim glanced behind him before heading up the stairs. Turbolifts weren’t working. He made his way through the dead and wounded. Bones was right, Pike was dead. Admiral Marcus was remarkably healthy.

“Dr. Kirk, good to see you,” Marcus said. Jim looked up to find the Admiral hovering over him and his patient. “How is she?” he asked, pointing the captain of the USS Hood.

“She’s critical, but she should be fine,” Jim responded as he moved onto the next patient. “I’m sorry about Admiral Pike.” Jim’s throat closed momentarily. Pike had been a good friend.

“Thank you, Doctor. If you’ll excuse me, I need to make decisions regarding catching the criminal who did this,” the admiral strode away.

The next day made Jim glad that he sent the kids away. He received a text message from McCoy to report to the shuttle headed for the Enterprise. “We’re headed where?” Jim asked incredulously. He sat behind McCoy and Uhura and beside Spock.

“Qo’noS,” McCoy replied as a beautiful blonde who introduced herself as Carol walked up. “We’re going after John Harrison.” Jim sighed, this wasn’t going to be good. Then he looked at his PADD. Christine had sent him a message. She had found Roger, and they had come to an understanding. She would be heading back to Earth next week. He tapped back a message to meet them in Zurich. The kids would be happy to see her, and so would he.


	35. I’m Sorry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this is it. After much debate, and head-butting damn Klingons!, someone else will die. Leaving behind at least one kid, and a lot of heartbreak. And, no, haven’t forgotten about that tribble. Don’t own them.

He killed his best friend. That was all he could think of. He looked up to find several nurses and Dr. Marcus hurrying working in Sickbay. Their activity seemed to surround him, his best friend. They and the Doctor were holding hurried conversation before the doctor hurried over to a console, “Sickbay to Bridge. I can’t get a hold of Spock. I need Khan alive. You get that son-of-a bitch back on board. I think he can save…”

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

“Put your arm through the hole,” Jim told John Harrison. The man willingly complied. Bones watched as Jim pressed the blood collector against Harrison’s skin. The man’s piercing blue eyes met his own. Jim almost shivered at the power behind the eyes. “Thank you,” he murmured as he finished. Jim pulled McCoy aside. “Are you sure this is a good idea? Chekov resigned, you have Sulu trying to fix the engines. He has no experience…”

“Jim, I can’t put you in charge of Engineering and run Sickbay,” McCoy said.

“Bones…” Jim’s voice trailed off. “I’ll see what I can find out about this blood. An hour later McCoy received another call from Jim, “Bones, this blood has regenerative powers I’ve never seen. I’m injecting it into Chekov’s tribble, not that he’s here to appreciate it.”

Bones sighed, they were here on the edge of Klingon space, unable to go anywhere. They had seventy-two torpedoes, and had captured John Harrison. Uhura was currently in command of the bridge, and McCoy had coordinates that he had no idea what to do with. And a challenge to open up a torpedo. Bones flipped open his communicator and prayed that it would be answered.

“Chekov here,” came the reply.

“Pavel, thank god you answered. I need you to check out some coordinates,” he said.

“Now, vhy vould I do that for you, Captain Perfect Hair McCoy. See, I called him Perfect Hair,” McCoy heard Chekov say to someone, probably Keenser.”

“Please, Pavel, it’s urgent,” McCoy said reading out the coordinates. “Do you have it?”

“Please, like I cannot remember four numbers! Vhat vas the third number again?” McCoy rolled his eyes as he repeated them. His next job was to accompany Carol into a shuttle where he discovered that she had a tight little body. Then he sent Jim down to an asteroid with Dr. Marcus to open up a torpedo.

“You know, when I pictured myself getting away with a beautiful woman, it wasn’t with a torpedo between us,” Jim joked.

“Jim, stop flirting or I’ll tell Christine,” Bones growled over the comm. He immediately regretted it when Jim’s arm got stuck in the arming mechanism of the torpedo. Carol disarmed it as Bones’ fear spiked.  He heard both of them gasp.

“Bones, you’re not going to believe this…” Jim said. When they got back to the Enterprise, Bones was flabbergasted. “This technology is actually primitive,” Jim said. “We haven’t needed cryotubes since Zephram Cochrane invented Warp Drive.”

“So, how old is he?” McCoy asked.

“Roughly three hundred years old,” Carol answered.

McCoy turned on his heel as Jim looked at Carol and continued working. Soon, he found John Harrison, now Khan, in his Sickbay under heavy guard.

“I don’t understand, Doctor,” Khan said.

“Excuse me?” Kirk replied.

“You have a genius intellect. Analytical skills that would make most Admirals envious, and a physique the envy of many, why are you just a doctor?”

“Childhood experiences, I guess,” Jim replied. “I wanted to help people heal.”

“That’s what you’re doing with an engineering degree and a computer science degree?” he was relieved that they were finally back at warp. Jim looked up as Bones reentered Sickbay. He was asking for Khan’s help. The only problem was that he was afraid of the only way to get over to the Vengeance, he was going to have to fly in space. “You can do it, Bones.” Jim said with a grin.

Bones did, and Jim found himself in the shuttle bay, disarming more torpedoes with his medical staff and Engineering crew. They managed to get all of Khan’s crew out of the torpedoes and shipped them back to Sickbay, “Kirk to Spock, mission accomplished.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” Spock responded.

Even in Sickbay Jim felt the impact of the torpedoes on the Enterprise’s hull. He looked up to find Bones and Chekov running into Sickbay. “Jim!” Bones cried handing Carol over to the staff. “Did Spock just kill Khan’s crew?!”

“Spock may be green blooded, but he’s not cold-blooded, I’ve got Khan’s crew right here. Seventy-two human popsicles, right over there,” Jim pointed to the cryotubes taking up space in Sickbay.

Chekov looked at them, “I need to get to Engineering.”

Bones looked at Jim helplessly, Jim sighed, “I’m going, Bones, I’m going. On one condition, you let Geoffrey check you out.” He was suddenly discovering the downside to having that Engineering degree.

Bones watched as the two men raced out of Sickbay and settled down on a biobed as Geoffrey strapped Carol to another biobed. In fact when the ship started spinning and tipping out of control, Bones found himself strapped to a chair with most of Sickbay. Bones feared what was happening out in the rest of the ship. Bones hated this, it was why he initially didn’t want to go into space. Then, he was handed the Enterprise and given everything he could possibly want, almost anything, anyway. Suddenly, the spinning and tipping stopped. Bones sighed in relief as M’Benga hauled him over to a biobed, stopping to pick up the dead tribble off the floor and putting it back on the monitor that it had been thrown from.

“Engineering to Sickbay, we need a body bag,” Chekov’s voice sounded over the comm. M’Benga and McCoy looked up. M’Benga sent a team with a body bag in tow. Neither thought anything about it until the team came back, Chekov with them. McCoy watched as Chekov struggled to contain his tears. M’Benga approached the body bag they laid out on the gurney. McCoy didn’t want him to open that bag, and he when he did, McCoy collapsed back into the chair as Jim’s face was revealed.

“What…what happened,” Bones asked. His mind kept going over what he would say to Penny, Peter and Frank at that planned rendezvous in Zurich.

“He vent into the varp core to realign it. The radiation vas too much, he knew it vhen he vent in. I think Spock vent down to take care of Khan,” Chekov choked out.

M’Benga turned away from the sight in the bag. It wasn’t right, Jim was so young. McCoy buried his head in his hands, barely hearing M’Benga calling for a cryotube. He had killed his best friend.


	36. Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> M’Benga is making a bold decision about Kirk, and needs everybody’s help. Don’t own them.

“Dr. M’Benga,” Scotty’s voice sounded over, “Mr. Spock has Khan. They’re beaming into Transporter Room 3 as we speak.”

M’Benga nodded to his team as they took off for the Transporter Room, “Is he alive?”

“Spock said tha’ he is,” Scotty replied.

M’Benga breathed a sigh of relief as he approached McCoy, “Captain.” McCoy refused to look at him, “Leonard, look at me.” Leonard looked at him. “Does Jim have family? Other than the kids?” Leonard nodded his head. “I need them to meet me in Zurich. The hospital in San Francisco took heavy damage and they’re directing us to other hospitals. I may be able to save Jim, but I need permission from the family to do so.”

Leonard nodded his head before staring at his communicator. Gloria, fortunately, was nearby as she called Frank, “Frank, something’s happened to Jim. We need you and the kids to come to the Fleet hospital in Zurich.”

“We’ll be there,” Frank replied.

It was a good thing that Khan had Spock there. McCoy flew across Sickbay toward the augment. Spock caught him by the arms in a vice. “Jim is DEAD because of him!” McCoy shouted.

Spock looked him straight in the eyes, “I know. I was there when Jim died, but M’Benga believes that Khan’s blood can bring Jim back. If he didn’t think so, Khan would be dead.”

“Why would you care?” McCoy asked.

Spock sighed, “Because Jim was my friend.”

“Alright, the shuttle is here. I’m headed down there with Jim’s tube,” M’Benga was telling a nurse. “Make sure the rest of the wounded get where they’re headed. Starfleet will know where to find me.” McCoy watched as M’Benga grabbed a cooler and directed the tube out the doors. McCoy, Spock and Chekov followed him with Uhura came close behind them. The got to the shuttle and M’Benga turned around, “I’ll keep you posted,” he told them.

McCoy spent the rest of the day clearing out first his and then Jim’s quarters of all their personal effects. If M’Benga wasn’t successful, Frank would want his stuff, and Penny and Peter’s toys and clothes needed to get down to them. A yeoman came through with a cart to help transport everything off the ship. McCoy packed a small suitcase for himself before putting on his dress uniform. He’d already been informed that he would face the Admiralty when he transported down.

It was grueling. They went over every aspect of what happened. Three hours of questioning and McCoy was looking fatigued. The final question took him by surprise, “How is Dr. Kirk?”

Leonard looked up at Admiral Archer, “I don’t know, Admiral. I haven’t heard anything from Dr. M’Benga since he left the Enterprise eight hours ago.”

Archer sighed, “Go see your daughter and check up on the doctor. We’ll meet again in the morning.”

McCoy walked out the gates of Starfleet Command and for the first time saw the devastation of Khan’s attack. He swallowed. So many were dead and dying. He needed to see Jo. He contacted Frank and discovered that everyone was waiting for him in Zurich. He caught the next shuttle to Zurich and in minutes arrived at his destination.

The hospital was eerily quiet as he walked to the ICU. Everyone went about the duties silently, as if the terrible devastation in San Francisco had silenced the whole place. He found Frank, Jo, Penny, Peter, Hannah and Christine waiting for him. Jo ran over to him and threw her arms around his waist, sobbing. “How is he?” McCoy asked, picking Jo up.

“He’s alive,” Frank said. “His heart started beating an hour ago.”

McCoy breathed a sigh of relief. He knew Jim had a long way to go. He just hoped he had the will to get there.


	37. Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As usual, Jim isn’t reacting very well to Khan’s blood, and McCoy decides to leave his side on a quest, with Carol at his side. Don’t own them.

Leonard and Spock stood looking at their friend. Leonard swallowed, hard. Last night M’Benga had put Jim on a ventilator, his lungs trying to fill up with fluid. Penny and Peter were pressed up against his side almost willing their uncle to come back to them. Jim looked pale and fragile as Frank looked on from the bedside chair. The man he’d come to see as a son fighting for his life. “What were his last words, Spock?” Leonard asked. “What did he say to you?”

Spock had been in the command chair. Uhura was down in the bowels of the ship making sure nothing else happened. She survived. Scotty pulled out the miracle of stabilizing the ship after the power came back on and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. “Engineering to Bridge,” came the call.

“Mr. Chekov,” Spock replied.

“Mr. Spock, you’d better get down here, better hurry,” Chekov came back.

Spock tore out of the bridge passing Uhura without ever noticing her. When he found Chekov, the man couldn’t even meet him in the eye before shaking his head. Sulu was off to one side, looking stunned. He hurried over to the warp core room and closed his eyes briefly before looking at Chekov, “Open it!”

“I can’t, Spock. If I do the whole compartment vill fill vith radiation. He did not do this to sacrifice all of our liwes.”

Spock dropped to a crouch and watched as Jim settled into a reasonably comfortable position before pulling a lever to close the outer hatch. His breathing was obviously labored and movements becoming harder and harder as the hand dropped to the floor. Jim finally opened his eyes, squinting at the Vulcan, “How’s the ship?”

“Out of danger, you saved the crew,” Spock replied.

“And what you did, that was a nice move,” Jim said admiringly.

“It is what you would have done,” Spock said.

“And this…this is what you would’ve done. It’s only logical. I…” Jim started coughing, fluid filling his lungs. “Spock, please, I need you to understand. You are my friend. You are no longer alone, you have friends on this ship.” He coughed again, “To quote your older self: I have been, and always shall be, your friend.” Spock’s throat felt as if it were closing as he fought back the tears he didn’t realize were coursing down his cheeks. “Tell Bones not to blame himself, I chose this. Tell Penny and Peter that I love them, that I will always be with them.” With that, Jim pushed the last of his strength into his arm as he planted his hand against the door. Spock did the same with his forming the Vulcan salute. Jim emulated it before looking back at the Vulcan. Then, he was gone. Spock watched as the light faded from his eyes and they turned away from him, his hand falling from the door.

“Next thing I remember I was on a garbage scow above San Francisco beating Khan to a pulp and Uhura screaming at me that he might be able to save Kirk.”

Frank got up and came up to them, “Thank you, both of you. I don’t know how much longer this can last.” The man choked up with tears.

“Maybe he needs an incentive to live, maybe there’s something eluding us that would bring him back,” Hannah’s voice sounded behind them.

Spock shook his head. McCoy looked at his mother, “Can you take care of Jo for a while. I’m going off-planet.” They all looked at him confused as he hurried away.

McCoy found himself with Dr. Marcus at his side sitting across from the Federation President, Marlene Fitzwilliams, explaining himself. “His wife died on Deneva, but confirmed reports state that she gave birth to a daughter before she died.”

“No one knows what happened to that daughter,” Marlene replied. “You want to go to Deneva and see if you can find this little girl.”

McCoy breathed, “Yes, I have the DNA profile of both Jim and Ekaterina registered when they got their marriage certificate.”

The President flipped them some keys, “Old fashioned, I know, but these are to my personal yacht. I’d rather pin a medal on a living man’s chest than bury a dead hero. I expect to have pictures sent to me when you find her!” she shouted after the retreating Starfleet officers.

Uhura and Scotty came along once they heard where they were headed. Chapel met them as they took off, wishing them the best of luck. The trip to Deneva took three days. The yacht was built for luxury cruising, not fast trips around Alpha Quadrant. Bones distributed the DNA profiles among them, “Okay, the child is a girl, between four and five Earth years old. The name given to her by her mother was Marina. There are thirty-seven orphanages on Deneva, so this may take a while. We’ll report back here at the end of every day.”

Thirty three orphanages and six days in and McCoy thought he was going to go mad. Each director was more than happy to help, and pointed out children of the right age. One overbearing director even tried to convince him that one child was the girl they were looking for, even though she wasn’t even the right species.

It was the thirty-fourth orphanage that they got a hit. It was everyone’s luck that it was McCoy who found the blonde haired, blue eyed, cherub faced four year old who displayed, even this early, the renowned temper of her father. McCoy’s head snapped around when he heard an attendant scold, “Now, Marina, you know you don’t want to hurt Edward.”

“I don’t want to live here!” the young voice screamed. “I want a Mommy and Daddy!” The tirade went on for minutes before McCoy approached them. The little girl hadn’t thrown herself down on the floor and beat her hands and feet against it, no, she had simply folded her arms across her tiny chest and was turning an interesting shade of purple.

“Well, you’re not going to get it acting like that,” the attendant told her.

“Excuse me,” McCoy interrupted her. “Did you say her name is Marina?”

“Well, yes,” the attendant told him.

“I’m sorry, Captain Leonard McCoy, USS Enterprise. I’m looking for a little girl about her age. Her mother died here on Deneva, but her father hadn’t made it here yet. No one was sure what happened to the little girl, but I’m here to reunite her with her father.”

“Okay, see if she’s the one you’re looking for,” the attendant replied gesturing to the defiant little girl.

Leonard knelt down in front of her with a tricorder, “Hi, I’m Leonard. I have a little girl who’s just a bit older than you.” He kept the running dialogue as the tricorder pinged, it was a match. He then spent the next two hours arguing with the director about taking the girl. It had finally gotten to the point where the President of the Federation and the Governor of Deneva had to intervene, but they were soon all back aboard the President’s yacht, headed back to Earth.

“Where am I going?” Marina asked.

“To meet your father,” Leonard replied as they raced back to Earth, hoping to give Jim an incentive to stay alive.


	38. A Little Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> McCoy brings Marina home to various reactions, all revealing the same thing from those who knew both Kitty and Jim. Don’t own them.

Leonard kept his word, he stopped by the President’s office before heading for Zurich. She gushed over the beautiful little girl, and gave her her first toy, a stuffed bear. Archer was the first person they encountered that knew Kitty. He stopped and stared, before walking over and touching Marina tears clearly in his eyes. “She looks like Kitty,” he murmured. The old man looked like he was about to break down and cry. “He’s not doing good, Leonard. You better hurry.”

Leonard did hurry. He was allowed transporter privileges as they beamed them directly to the front steps of the Zurich hospital. Gloria watched him hurry in and dropped the coffee cup she held. It shattered on the sidewalk. It had been nearly two weeks since he left for Deneva. According to reports, Jim had stabilized, Khan’s blood had worked, but he wouldn’t wake up. Three weeks after dying and being brought back, and nothing seemed to draw him back into the world. No one, not even the neurologists, could explain it. It was almost as if he preferred where he was to the real world.

Leonard walked in. Jim lay there, as unmoving as when Leonard had left. Frank looked up and his eyes widened. Very gently he pulled Penny and Peter out of the bed and replaced them in the chair he had just vacated.

“Marina, this is your father, James Kirk,” Leonard said, introducing the tiny girl to her father. “Remember when I told you that he was very sick?” she nodded her little head. “Well, he’s gotten better, but they can’t get him to wake up. Maybe you can get him to wake up?”

“I’ll try,” she promised as he picked her up off his hip and placed her in the bed beside her father.

“Jim, I found her. Here’s your little girl,” Leonard whispered.

Marina curled up next to her father, “Daddy? I can call you that, right? I’ve always wanted a Daddy, and a Mommy, but this is good. Wake up, Daddy, please.”

Frank came up behind Leonard, looking at the little girl. They quietly watched as the little girl continued to talk to the unconscious man. The whole world seemed to narrow to these first moments between the new family. Leonard heard Frank draw breath to introduce himself when Jim’s eyes opened. His head turned to take in the little girl talking next to him. She reached out and touched his face as Leonard couldn’t hold back the tears. Jim turned his lips to the little hand and kissed it, whispering, “Marina.” She threw her little arms around his neck as Jim looked up at his friends with the brightest smile Leonard had ever seen him give.

Penny had had enough sense to hurry out and get a nurse to get M’Benga. Geoff hurried in and smiled, just as happy to see his friend awake, “How are you feeling?”

“Weak, happy, I don’t know how else to describe this moment,” Jim said, unable to tear his eyes from his daughter.

“We can work on the weakness, Jim. Good to have you back,” M’Benga said.

“Marina?” Frank asked. The little girl looked up, “I’m your Grandpa Frank. These are your cousins Penny and Peter.”

“I have a Grandpa?” the little girl cried launching herself at the older man.

Jim chuckled as Frank hugged her, “Yes, sweetheart, you also have two Russian grandparents who are anxious to meet you.

It didn’t take long. Kitty’s parents Alexandra and Nikolai were there in hours. The four year old who had had no parental attention most of her life, suddenly had more than she knew what to do with. Nikolai and Alexandra headed off to shop to spoil this child, and Frank took Penny and Peter back to the hotel room where they were staying to get some rest. Leonard sat down in the chair next to Jim’s bed. Jim looked at him, “Thank you, Bones.”

“Jim, it was the least I could do after you saved everybody,” Leonard looked up as Spock entered the room.

“Yeah, how is it that I’m still alive?”

“That tribble you injected with Khan’s blood? M’Benga noticed that it was alive after you were brought in. That triggered a three week effort to bring you back to life.”

“Three weeks? How’d you catch him?” Jim asked.

“I didn’t,” Leonard said, looking up at Spock.

Jim’s eyes went to Spock, “You saved my life.”

“Uh, M’Benga might have had something to do with that, Jim,” Leonard said with a laugh.

“You saved my life and that of everyone on…”

“Spock, just, thank you.”

“You are welcome, Jim.”


	39. Getting to Know You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For all they’ve fallen in love with Marina, they don’t know her. So it’s time to get to do just that. It’s going to be a while before the Enterprise leaves on their five year mission. And her Russian grandparents can’t help but spoil all the kids, whether or not they’re actually related to them! Warning, lots and lots of fluffy bunnies going here. Don’t own them.

Frank had left to get some dinner for himself and the kids. McCoy had just walked in and found Jim had drifted back to sleep. Peter was sitting on the cot and Penny and Jo were sitting in the chair with Marina sandwiched between them. Penny held a PADD so that Marina could look at it. The ten year old had already taken on the role of big sister, “And this is where we’ll live. This is the USS Enterprise. Jo’s Daddy is the Captain, he’s in charge of the ship, and your Daddy, our Uncle, is its Head Doctor, he’s in charge of the sick people.”

“What about Uncle Geoff?” Marina asked. M’Benga had saved Jim, so he was now an uncle.

“He works with Uncle Jim. Nurse Chapel is special, she and Uncle Jim are dating,” Jo responded.

“Could she be my new Mommy?” Marina asked.

“She could be,” Penny responded. Leonard smothered a laugh. She fiddled with the PADD, “This is your mother, Aunt Kitty. She was very beautiful.” Marina sighed at the sight of the mother she would never know except through the memories of others.

Marina looked up, “Did you know my mommy, Uncle Leonard?”

“No, sweetie, I met your Daddy after she died,” Leonard replied. Surreptitiously, he took a picture of this moment. It was too cute. It was a week before Jim could lift his arms without them shaking so badly he dropped whatever he held. People helped him eat. Marina’s Grandparents, Frank, Leonard and occasionally Penny chipped in to help him eat.

The first time he held his daughter she had curled herself into his chest. Jim looked at her wistfully and his seriously uncooperative arms. Jo walked over and pulled the far arm around the little girl before curling the arm under her around her. Jim smiled as Jo kissed the little girl’s head before returning to her homework in her chair. Marina snuggled further into his arms never waking up. Leonard got a picture of that too.

As the weeks went on Hikaru brought his own daughter, Demora, to visit. She would be staying with her mother in San Francisco, but he didn’t want to miss out on all the happiness that this presented. Jim had started Physical Therapy three days before, and when he returned he found Sulu, Frank, and Leonard sitting around a miniature table with the kids all playing tea. “Well, reputations are now ruined all around,” Jim said with a laugh.

“Daddy!” Marina cried flying across the room and into his arms. He hugged the little girl with a big smile.

Alexandra and Nikolai wasted no time in spoiling her rotten. Within days of her arrival clothes, toys, shoes, coats and various items that any little girl could want flooded Jim’s room. Most of it was packed, labeled, and shipped back to Jim’s San Francisco apartment when they returned home such as it was. What no one expected was their circle widened to include Peter, Penny, and Jo. Hannah huffed, pointing out that she already had a grandmother. This prompted her to go out and buy stuff for the kids as well. Frank stayed out of it, preferring just to spend time with them. By the time Jim returned to San Francisco, they’d had to put most of the stuff in storage or give it to charity since he simply didn’t have a place to put them.

The day Jim returned to San Francisco, Admiral Acher asked for him to come to his office. He took him, Gloria, and Tom downstairs to the morgue. There, a man lay. The man was unremarkable, in his early eighties and Caucasian, his throat had been slit. Everyone stared at the remains, no one breathed. “Kodos,” Tom finally breathed.

“Are you sure,” Archer asked.

They all nodded their heads, “What happened?” Jim finally asked.

“He was found this way. Lenore identified him as her father. We just needed your confirmation,” Archer responded. So, that was it. The Kodos saga came to a quiet end. No one went looking for his killer. The police wrote it off as self-defense, possible PTSD. He was cremated and his ashes lost to time. No one would ever pay tribute to the Executioner’s grave.


	40. Birthdays and the Black

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Forty chapters, huh, well, nice round number as this story draws to a close. To everyone who commented, liked, kudoed and encouraged me, thank you. Happy the Exceed, Seacat03, Redford/Horatio, Silver-Shadow Spark, Restful Sky5, MilkyWaySuperNova, MySweetCat, LawLady562, TheMysteriousStranger, and many a Guest, I couldn’t have done it without all your encouragement. Someone is turning five and another is turning eight, and its time they headed out on their mission. Frank and everyone will miss them lots. Don’t own anything.

Jim walked into the Academy’s cafeteria he had to laugh. A huge banner was strung across the far wall, “Happy Birthday Marina and Joanna.” A presents littered an entire table in the corner. They were small, and in keeping with the upcoming mission in terms of size and space limits. In the year since Khan’s attack, the kids had all wrapped the entire Academy, from the Admirals to the Cadets, around their collective little fingers. Irony had it that Spock found himself pulling flowers from Admiral Johnson’s garden and giving them to little Marina. Kirk suppressed a laugh and later told Uhura that she had competition from a four year old.

The orphanage in which Marina had lived for the first four years of her life had had few records of birth. They tended to have huge birthday parties twice a month for various age groups. It was fortunate that Penny was old enough at the time to remember when Marina was born. Jo’s birthday was within a week of Marina’s, and Jo was more than happy to find a happy median and share the party, “The more the merrier.” Jo had said.

Admiral Archer brought Porthos and he was an instant hit as the girls sat in the floor and let him lick them to his heart’s content. They were also given a holo of Porthos looking cute in his doggie bed. Frank gave Marina a locket with his picture in it. He gave Jo a book of Science, especially on Biology, she loved animals. They both got stuffed tribbles, no one wanted to have the real thing on board, things could get crowded quickly.

Penny, Peter and Jim had pitched in and gotten both of them a holo album. They filled it with various holos of memories over the years. The first picture in Marina’s album was the wedding holo of her parents on their wedding day. The first one in Jo’s was one of the Enterprise’s Command crew and her grandmother. Chekov was so cute, he gave them both necklaces that he had made from beads. Scotty got them books on Scottish brogue and what the translated into in Federation Standard. Undeterred by the fact that Marina was too young to read, he commented that she would read it when she was older.

Jim had another surprise for Marina. He had finally gotten up the nerve to ask Christine Chapel to marry him, and she had said yes. Penny and Peter would have a new Aunt, Marina a new Mommy, and Leonard was looking forward to performing the ceremony in space. Archer was a little put out that they wouldn’t hurry up and do it on Earth. The families knew that they would be there in spirit. Jo was hoping the Dr. Marcus would get closer to her own father. Seems she had caught them kissing under the mistletoe last New Year’s Eve, and pictures had been circling around the crew ever since.

That night, Jim, Frank, Marina, Peter and Penny transported to Iowa one last time to pay tribute to those they would leave behind in memory. They stood in silent communion with the universe before Jim finally spoke, “Hey Kitty, look what we found.” He pressed a kiss to Marina’s forehead. “I love you, Kitty, I never will stop, but I’ve found someone else, I hope you don’t mind.” Jim sighed, “I guess it’s time to move on, but I can never forget, can I?” Frank laid his hand on Jim’s shoulder as Penny and Peter said their good-byes to their parents. Sam, Aurelan, and Kitty would always be with them. Parting and never parted, the Vulcan saying rang in Jim’s head.

The next day Leonard stood on a stage in front of a distinguished crowd and gave a speech. It was a speech about hope and loss, and what Starfleet meant in his own terms. He smiled across the crowd at his daughter and Jim and the kids next to him. Starfleet had knocked down a wall into the next room so there would be plenty of room for everyone. School had expanded to meet the increasing needs of those on the Enterprise as their families, for the first time in Starfleet History, headed out with the crew for their five year mission. Spouses, who didn’t work in Starfleet, and children had gotten left behind for many years, and they left gaping holes in the hearts of those left behind.

Jim wondered about that as he herded his small family on board the shuttle headed for the Enterprise. Everything was changing, and their new adventures would be at the forefront of everything that was to come. Christine smiled as they left the shuttle and went to their quarters, wading through several families headed to find their own places on the family deck. He had finally gotten everybody settled down when Chris turned to him, “Go on, we’ll be fine.” Jim smiled and kissed her as he left.

Jim was on the bridge only a few moments when Leonard entered behind him, “Captain on the Bridge,” Scotty announced, vacating the center seat.

“Hard to give it up once you’ve had a taste of it, isn’t it, Scotty?” Leonard asked as he smoothly slid into the seat.

“Captain does hae a nice ring to it,” Scotty replied.

“Mr. Chekov, how’s our core?” Leonard called.

“Purring like a kitten, Keptin,” Chekov replied. Jim could all but hear the grin their chief engineer was wearing.

“Where shall we go?” Leonard asked, looking around.

“Well, as a mission of this magnitude has never been attempted, I shall defer to your expertise,” Spock replied.

Jim smothered a laugh. This was going to be an interesting adventure after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All review and comments are welcome! Thank you for coming along for this ride!


End file.
